Tang Xiansheng left South County and moved towards the capital city.
The whole of South County was controlled by Tang Xiansheng’s oldest son, Tang Baiyun, who was the future heir to the family.
Tang Baiyun had finally experienced what it felt like to be in power after he was freed from Tang Xiansheng’s oppression.
However, Tang Baiyun was not obsessed with this feeling. Instead, he spent his time and energy exploring the Dragon Gate Secret Realm as well as nurturing the South Manor Army. He was even ambitious in wanting to train the South Manor Army and turn it into a private army loyal to him.
Smashing terracotta warriors gave Spirit Qi, and this was but one corner of the Dragon Gate Secret Realm. If they crossed the iron chain bridge and stepped onto the floating sky island, would there be greater opportunities awaiting him?
He had ordered people to barge into the floating sky island once before.
The two First Resonance Grandmasters had barely set foot on the iron chain bridge before their heads shot into the sky and their bodies were tossed, plunging off the cliff.
Tang Baiyun had not even been able to clearly see how the two grandmasters had died, which was why this had given him such a scare.
He also understood that this iron chain bridge was basically impossible for the South Manor Army to cross, given their current strength. Even if he sent the entire army there, it would be complete annihilation.
Perhaps he might have a better shot at this if he waited for Tang Yimo to return.
Night fell.
Tang Baiyun sat in a wooden armchair. His gaze was directed at the floor and he looked like he was lost in thought.
“Tang Yimo…”
Suddenly, Tang Baiyun clenched his fists. He took in a deep breath, envy and resentment leaked from his words.
Tang Yimo’s cultivation methods had been a great source of envy.
Tang Baiyun was considered a cultivator today… but, he lacked cultivation methods, so he was not considered a proper cultivator.
Tang Yimo was different. Tang Yimo had legitimate cultivation methods which could even increase his fighting powers greatly.
“I’m here to report…”
Just as Tang Baiyun was thinking about how to get some of these cultivation methods from Tang Yimo, an armored soldier made his way through the door hastily.
“I’m here to report to you, First Young Master. There’s someone outside who’s looking for you,” the soldier said quickly.
“The person said he’d be allowed to enter if I were to present this item to you, First Young Master,” the soldier continued. He handed an item over to Tang Baiyun, a crudely carved wooden figure that looked rather strange.
Tang Baiyun squinted.
He took the figure. This figure looked like it was rather quickly produced, yet there was something about how rough and primitive it looked.
“Let him in,” Tang Baiyun said.
The soldier acknowledged with a fist and palm salute, then took his leave from the room.
Not long after, the sound of footsteps became audible, and a figure dressed entirely in black robes stepped into the house to stand in front of Tang Baiyun.
The faint sound of strange, eerie laughter lingered in the room.
…
The Sword Saint, Hua Dongliu, also known as One Sword Dongliu. Although he was a philosopher of the Sword Sect, his power was not divided like those in the Sword Sect who carried sword boxes with multiple swords.
He used only one sword, an old sword that had accompanied him for decades on his journey around Jianghu.
Although the sword was aged, it was still as sharp as ever.
Gongshu Yu, Xie Yunling, and Huang Dongliu. The three of them had finally made their way down Zhongnan Mountain since they came to a consensus.
The three of them found horse carriages and slowly made their way towards the North County. They were in no rush to immediately enter Beiluo, deciding to head to the North County instead.
When Sword Saint, Hua Dongliu, left Zhongnan Mountain, the entire Zhongnan Sword Sect moved as well.
Many of the Sword Sect students made their way down Zhongnan Mountain and headed north.
…
Tiandang Mountain, Daoist School.
An ox with a young man dressed in blue was slowly trudging along.
Li Sansi looked at Tiandang Mountain that was enshrouded in clouds and mist, his emotions warring within him. He made his way up the ancient steps, leading the ox along, taking one step after the other.
The knife marks were still there on the broken main gate.
Li Sansi focused his gaze on the gate, then reached out his hand to touch the gate and the knife marks left on it.
Something indistinct flickered in front of him. It seemed like a person who took firm steps, one step after the other up from the foot of the mountain, then split open the main gate in front of him with a swing of the blade.
“Is that you, Old Ten?”
Li Sansi did not know what to feel.
He had chosen this path in the end, but it was not something to be surprised at.
At the end of the day, all grudges had to be resolved anyway.
He stepped onto the field. Quite a number of the people who had been tidying the place froze for a while when they saw Li Sansi, and a lot of them became excited.
“Senior Brother Sansi is back!”
“Daoist No. One had returned!”
“He’s finally back, though it would have been great if he had returned earlier. Then there would have been someone to stop Nie Changqing.”
The students of the Daoist School were excited but also rather desolate.
They had once been arrogant and conceited like all of the other Hundred Schools of Philosophy-level forces.
However, on that day, a single person had thoroughly shattered that arrogance and conceit with a single cut.
Li Sansi was slightly shocked. He had not expected there would be such a huge reception to his return.
He nodded in acknowledgment with a slight smile, letting a Daoist disciple lead his black ox away while he made his way up to Star Picking Peak in the direction of the bamboo house.
“There’s a Dragon Gate…in my Daoist school as well?”
Li Sansi looked at the Dragon Gate that was both familiar and yet foreign at the same time, a mix of emotions swirling within him.
But when he saw the Dragon Gate and the dense swirling of fog on it, it transformed into Li Sansui’s figure.
Li Sansui was dressed in a Daoist Nun’s clothing. She raised her hand, and all of a sudden, clouds bore down harshly and transformed into a Cloud Dragon. It was oppressive and terrifying.
“You have finally returned,” Li Sansui said, looking directly at Li Sansi.
Cloud Dragon swooped down fiercely, its ferocity unstoppable.
Li Sansi had his hands clasped behind his back. With a smile, he held his wooden sword and lifted it slowly.
Cloud Dragon growled, but Li Sansi did nothing but gently tap his wooden sword on the tip of its nose. The enormous Cloud Dragon that had covered the entire Star Picking Peak started to crumble bit by bit.
The wind howled violently, blowing harshly against Li Sansi’s robes, making them flutter in the wind.
“Not bad at all, Ninth Stage Qi Core Realm…”
Li Sansi smiled gently.
Li Sansui, who had sitting in front of the Dragon Gate with her back upright, stared with her eyes wide open as if she could not believe what she was seeing.
“You’ve grown stronger!” Li Sansui said.
Li Sansi’s gaze turned fathomless. He held his wooden sword and looked at the stars that dotted the sky, as well as the Dragon Gate.
“Qi Core Realm… But I can’t get there anymore.”
“What about His Excellency?” Li Sansi continued asking, paying no mind to the shell-shocked Li Sansui.
Li Sansui floated down from the top of the Dragon Gate, a mix of emotions swirling within her as she looked at Li Sansi. Li Sansi seemed to have grown and become a little more mature and profound.
His body… What happened?
Li Sansui did not probe. Instead, she responded, “His Excellency… He couldn’t take it anymore.”
Li Sansi froze. What did that mean?!
“Brother Nie stopped by, and he cut through the main gate with one swing of his blade, defeating His Excellency in one blow and rescuing Sister Ru.”
“And so, His Excellency couldn’t take it anymore. He’s already headed to Beiluo.”
Li Sansui did not mince her words at all, and Li Sansi’s felt a little strange now as he listened to her speak.
“He really couldn’t take it anymore? Old Ten dealt a heavy blow to His Excellency, huh?” Li Sansi murmured as he stood against the wind on the peak of the mountain.
“His Excellency said that, if he did not return, I’d be the next philosopher of the Daoist School,” Li Sansui said flatly, her robes fluttering in the wind. She stared up at the canopy of stars that painted the night sky, stars that looked as if they could be reached if she just reached up.
“Oh.”
Then, Li Sansi nodded.
Li Sansui hummed softly in response, then the mountain peak fell into silence yet again.
The philosopher’s position did not drive a wedge between the siblings.
In reality, for Li Sansui and Li Sansi, both of them were honestly rather conflicted with regards to this position.
If Li Sansi had truly coveted the title, he would not have left the Daoist School for such a long time, wandering and floating between life and death.
“Hey, Sansui, if you’re going to be a woman who’ll sit on the seat of the philosopher, you’re going to have to take good care of yourself. Don’t cry over men anymore,” Li Sansi said with a smile that seemed somewhat relieved.
There was a stormy expression on Li Sansui’s face, and she stared icily at Li Sansi.
Rumble!
On Star Picking Peak, the clouds in the sky became agitated.
They transformed into a Cloud Dragon that covered the entire sky, gazing coldly at Li Sansi.
Li Sansi smiled mildly. He lifted his wooden sword up lightly. “There’s no use. I’ve reached the Internal Organs Realm, just try hitting at any Qi Core…”
“If you dare to retaliate, I’ll sit in front of our parents’ grave and cry,” Li Sansui said coldly.
Li Sansi’s hand froze.
After a while, the Cloud Dragon that took up all the space in the sky charged down at him.
The night deepened.
The Daoist School students were all amazed to see Daoist No. One, Li Sansi, limping down from Star Picking Peak. He sprawled over his black ox’s back, then made his way down Tiandang Mountain.
The black ox headed straight for Beiluo.
…
Beiluo, Lake Island.
The rain that had been pouring for a few days had finally cleared up, revealing a cloudless blue sky. The stars were twinkling, and the pale moonlight was gleaming.
On the second floor of the White Jade City Pavilion, there was a bout of excessive and terrifying power that loomed over the entire pavilion.
Lu Fan picked up a chess piece as he frowned. He stared down at the Spirit Pressure Chessboard.
There seemed to be a storm brewing in his gaze. As he put the piece down, the wind blew more harshly. He moved the piece and thunder roared.
It seemed like wind and rain was gathering around Lu Fan.
A storm.
That had made the air on Lake Island much cleaner and fresher.
Ni Yu stepped into puddles as she ran out of the pavilion with a black pot in her hand. Bai Qingniao scuttled behind her, carrying the little chicks in her arms.
Ni Yu’s gaze kept flickering to the little chicks and her tongue flicked out to lick at her lips.
Mingyue held on to her pipa as she wiped a stone step dry. She sat on the step, straight-backed and ready to play.
She was very stubborn and did not believe in heresy.
The sound of her pipa would blend in with the Spirit Qi of Heaven and Earth. She could do this!
Ning Zhao and Yi Yue stood about leisurely. They were looking at the cherry blossoms on the island that were on the verge of blooming.
All of a sudden, Ning Zhao’s jewel-like eyes gleamed.
The buds were about to blossom!
“These are spiritual creatures that Young Master himself planted and they’re just like the chrysanthemums that grow skyward. Once these cherry blossoms bloom, the Spirit Qi within every single one of these flowers will burst forth at once to form a great storm of Spirit Qi, so… You have to seize the opportunity,” Ning Zhao said, looking at Yi Yue.
Yi Yue’s eyes glinted, and she nodded excitedly.
The terrifying power coming from the chess room on the second floor of the pavilion made Yi Yue and Ning Zhao shake slightly.
“It’s getting harder and harder to read the prince these days, he’s so scary even though he’s just playing chess,” Yi Yue said.
Suddenly, beyond Lake Island that was enshrouded by a thick fog, a pigeon flapped its wings and made its way in.
It tore through the fog to land right on Lv Mudui who had been drinking tea.
Lv Mudui grabbed the pigeon and retrieved the letter tied to its foot.
Whoosh!
Tea spilled from the cup. The green tea gave off a strong aroma.
“What’s wrong? What kind of news has you so shocked?” Lv Dongxuan asked with a smile.
“Daoist School philosopher, Xie Yunling, and Sword Sect philosopher, Hua Dongliu, have both left the mountain. They’re heading north with Jiguan School philosopher, Gongshu Yu, and their goal…is Young Master,” Lv Mudui said sternly.
Lv Dongxuan, who had been drinking his tea, froze.
After a while, he shook his head with a smile. The large gold chain around his neck glinted.
“These old hags refuse to call it quits. But it’s understandable since they’re about to be left behind by these new developments. If they don’t leave their mark on the world now, they’ll probably be buried with their regrets.”
“Honestly speaking, these old folk are no fools. They know to bide their time…”
“They’re just refusing to give in.”
Lv Mudui drank a sip of the strong tea.
“Hua Dongliu of the Sword Sect is known as the number one swordsman in the world and he has been an accomplished Great Grandmaster for a long time, a Sword Sect philosopher at that. Aside from him, there’s also Xie Yunling and Gongshu Yu. Would they finally be a match for Young Master?” Lv Mudui asked curiously.
“A match?”
“What would they be fighting with?”
“Ten Hua Donglius cannot handle a single blow from the Young Master. They’re on completely different levels, how will they fight?”
Lv Dongxuan shook his head with a laugh.
“Honestly, those old folk don’t actually want a fight. Perhaps they just…don’t want to leave any regrets.”
Lv Mudui fell into deep thought.
No regrets, huh?
They knew that they would lose, that they would die, and yet they charged towards Beiluo with no hesitation anyway.
“What for?”
Lv Mudui poured some more tea.
Lv Dongxuan watched as green tea was leaked out ceaselessly. He raised a hand to touch the large gold chain on his neck.
“Perhaps, it’s to allow for one era to…come to a close in a way that leaves the least regrets.”
…
A day after, North County, Military Camp.
Three horse carriages entered.
Mo Beike stepped out of the tent after he received the news.
Tantai Xuan and Mo Ju followed after him.
Several of the North County generals looked curiously at the three elders who stepped out of the horse carriages.
They were hunched over, and it was not a reach to say that they already had one foot in the grave, and yet…the three of them were filled with energy.
One of them was every bit like an immortal, another was as sharp as a blade that could cut straight through the clouds, and the other, though short, evoked a sense of treachery and uncertainty.
Three Philosopher-level existences from the Hundred Schools of Philosophy!
“Mo Beike, we’re short of just one more person. Would you like to take a trip to Beiluo?” Xie Yunling asked.
Mo Beike smiled, the wrinkles on his face becoming visible.
“I’d love to go to Beiluo with you, but…
“I’m afraid Lu Ping’an will have me killed the moment I set foot into the city,” Mo Beike said with a smile.
He slowly recounted the time he had Wei Luan, a Yinyang School philosopher, pose as him.
“Based on what I know of Lu Ping’an and his temper and the fact that I’d cheated him once before, I’d definitely die a terrible death this time if I step foot into Beiluo. So that is why…you’ll have to excuse me.”
“I won’t be making this trip to Beiluo.”
Hua Dongliu looked over at Mo Beike indifferently.
Xie Yunling, on the other hand, looked overwhelmed with emotion. Wei Luan…so he was already dead. Gongshu Yu was struggling with conflicting emotions.
But the group persuaded him no further.
The three horse carriages turned around slowly and steered out of the North County military camp.
They stirred up quite a bit of dust as they disappeared into the horizon, heading straight for Beiluo.
Tantai Xuan had his hands clasped behind his back as he looked at the horse carriages riding off into the distance.
He could not help the wave of emotions that surged. “All eras will ultimately come to an end. It is said that every single one of them from Hundred Schools of Philosophy had been a person of extraordinary mind and talent. Now that I’ve seen them for myself, I have to agree they’re quite outstanding.”
“The collision between the era of the Hundred Schools of Philosophy and the era of White Jade City… Although very much overambitious and unattainable, if I miss something like this…I don’t think I will be able to take it lying down,” Mo Beike mused, slowly but suddenly, as he stared at the horse carriages that were disappearing quickly.
“Mayor, I think I’m going to head to Beiluo after all,” Mo Beike said, turning to look at Tantai Xuan and giving him a bow.
“You’re being too serious, Giant. Go if you wish. If you miss this chance, perhaps…it might be the greatest regret of your life,” Tantai Xuan said with a smile and a wave of his hands.
Mo Beike lowered into another bow.
Very quickly, from the North County camp, another carriage stirred up the dust as it sped through the fields, heading straight for Beiluo.
…
Capital City, Book Pavilion.
Looking out the window, right at the stubborn plantains that had been kicked up after the rain had beat down on it, Master, who had been sitting on his rocking chair, suddenly laughed.
“Prepare the car, Tianyu.”
Mo Tianyu, who had been drinking wine, was stunned by the suddenness of this.
“Where are you going, Master?”
Mo Tianyu did not understand.
“To Beiluo.” Master stood up. He dusted off his Confucian robe to make himself look much more energetic.
Mo Tianyu’s face twitched. The copper trigram he had been playing with fell to the ground from his hands.
“Master, why are you heading to Beiluo all of a sudden?”
Master smiled, but he said nothing. He looked out the window, at the plantains, and the stars that seemed impossibly bright.
There was nostalgia in his gaze.