Chapter 107: I Covet Both the Sword and the Person
The Yao Race's silver spear ultimately didn't pierce the Dan Mountain's divine path. Ji You floated down the mountain under everyone's gaze, just as Zuoqiuyang had said: the Yao Race's main purpose for this trip was to probe.
Before making a decision, they didn't want to fall out with the Human Race Immortal Sect.
Thus, the Tianshu Academy A group of people drove their Spirit Swords south, arriving in Yong Province after a night.
This was the only province the Nu River didn't pass through, making it impossible to travel by immortal ship.
So, they changed to horse-drawn carriages at the inn and continued their journey to Gan'an County, on the border of Yong Province and Ling Province.
Further west lay the shores of Xuán Hǎi, which was the Lingjian Mountain Dao field. From Gan'an County, it would only take half a day to reach by carriage.
Unlike the first half of their journey to the Dan Sect, the atmosphere among the Tianshu Academy Disciples was now a bit more somber.
Especially You Buyu and He Lingxiu, who felt increasing pressure and continuously extended their daily Cultivation time.
They bore the Sect's prestige of Tianshu Academy and represented its face. Their only choice was to win after asking about the Dao and return triumphantly.
However, as Zuoqiuyang said, the Lingjian Mountain's direct Disciples were not to be underestimated.
The direct Disciple of Tianjian Peak was named Zhuang You, not Yan. For an Disciple with a different surname to become a direct Disciple showed his talent.
As for Yan Shujing of Xuanjian Peak, though her reputation wasn't prominent, she was by no means an ordinary person.
Their harsh words at Tianshu Academy before their departure were for Aura, but now that they had arrived, it meant Lingjian Mountain was close at hand.
At this moment, neither You Buyu nor He Lingxiu dared to be careless.
“So many Lingjian Mountain Disciples—”
“Don't look, don't speak. Enter the inn to rest. We'll continue our journey tomorrow. Don't cause any trouble.”
Gan'an County was under the jurisdiction of Ling Province. There were many Lingjian Mountain Disciples, and when they saw the group dressed in Tianshu Academy immortal robes, their expressions turned unfriendly.
Especially after several close passes, the hum of Sword Qi was clearly audible.
This was not surprising; after all, they were about to challenge the Sect, so why would the others show a good face?
There were several times when they nearly clashed, but in the end, Tianshu Academy retreated.
Because they all knew that drawing swords now would be a private fight. If Lingjian Mountain gained the moral high ground, no matter if they were direct Disciples or not, they wouldn't be able to return.
Then, under the gaze of Lingjian Mountain Disciples and other Sects' travelers, everyone checked into an inn in Gan'an County.
At three quarters past Shenshi, the sun was setting in the west.
The temperature on the Yong-Ling border in early summer was still pleasant. Ji You was already sitting on the bed, continuing his micro-illumination, constantly tempering his Physical Body, causing his body to glow with light and his Qi and blood to surge.
This was his tenth micro-illumination, and the tremors within his body were stronger than before.
Especially when the Spiritual Qi impacted his limbs and bones, even his Divine Soul was agitated, and the pain of the spirit fire refining his Physical Body caused him to emit muffled groans involuntarily.
“Indeed, his Aura is getting stronger and stronger.”
“What cultivation method is this Ji You practicing?”
In the corridor of the inn, He Lingxiu stood with her arms crossed, sensing the continuously emanating Aura from the simple room opposite, her brows slightly furrowed.
She had just been Cultivating in her room. Now, stepping out for air, she easily felt Ji You's Aura.
And what she meant by 'strong' wasn't about his Realm, but about the feeling at the moment.
It was like steel plate and cotton. These two things didn't have Cultivation, but even by feeling, one could tell which was harder.
He Lingxiu felt as if something surging was constantly swelling and expanding in that room. The hot and humid Aura could even reach her face through the window cracks.
Most importantly, the muffled groans occasionally coming from the room made her face flush and her heart race.
If it weren't for Ji You being the only one making sounds, she would have suspected that he wasn't alone in his room.
This Aura continued for a long time until You Buyu returned from outside, his long sword still emitting a sharp Aura.
He was going to fight the strongest direct Disciple of Lingjian Mountain. He had put on a show, but the pressure was also immense. His previous composure on Dan Mountain had completely vanished.
Because he had too many distracting thoughts, after settling into the inn, he went outside the city to find a secluded spot to constantly integrate his Dao. He had just returned now.
“What is Junior Sister looking at?”
“Uh, nothing. Just enjoying the view.”
You Buyu now stood still: “We're almost at Lingjian Mountain. My mind is becoming more and more restless.”
+
He Lingxiu turned to look at him: “I also feel that Senior Brother You has had more distracting thoughts these past few days, but you must not be timid before the fight.”
“It's not about being timid before the fight. Those who can Cultivate to the Rongdao Realm at our age have their own pride, but sometimes pride is also pressure.”
He Lingxiu nodded, then saw the door of the small room opposite open.
Ji You stepped out, the turbulent Aura around him subsided.
His tenth micro-illumination wasn't over, because—he seemed to have felt a Bottleneck, and his expression was a bit strange.
He knew that comprehending the Dao had Bottlenecks, and without thorough understanding, even a hundred years would yield little results, but he didn't expect Body Refining to also have a Bottleneck.
Is it too hard?
Ji You now came to his senses and saw He Lingxiu, who possessed great freedom, and the grim-faced You Buyu standing in the corridor in front of the door.
The two sides met eyes. You Buyu glanced at him, then turned and returned to his room.
On the Dan Sect trip, he had originally led the team as a direct Disciple of the Hall Master to gain favor, intending to show his extraordinary qualities. But in his mind, at this moment, there was only the image of Yuan Caiwei clinging to Ji You.
He still couldn't understand why, in Yuan Caiwei's eyes, he, a direct Disciple of an Inner Courtyard Hall Master, was inferior to an Outer Courtyard Disciple.
Does he really have some extraordinary specialty that ordinary people can't match?
This made You Buyu extremely irritable, coupled with the approaching urgency of Lingjian Mountain, leading to intense Killing Intent.
However, they had come to Lingjian Mountain to ask about the Dao, and were under the gaze of thousands. Wherever they went, there was much discussion. In such circumstances, he couldn't make a move against Ji You.
Otherwise, with his status as a direct Disciple of the Hall Master, how could he tolerate an Outer Courtyard Disciple disturbing his Dao Heart?
In fact, when he came down from Dan Mountain yesterday, he actually greatly hoped that the Yao Race guard would attack him with his spear, but unfortunately, he didn't.
Ji You stood outside the door at this moment, hearing the heavy 'clunk' of the door closing, and a slight grin appeared at the corner of his mouth.
You Buyu had maintained this attitude the whole way, as if he had stolen his wife.
He felt wronged.
If You Buyu hadn't caused trouble and insisted on going to the Dan Sect, would his innocent body have been seen? It made him feel more and more guilty the closer he got to Lingjian Mountain, and he desperately refined his Physical Body.
That was meant for the Lingjian Mountain Master Jian to see first. If she knew someone else had seen it first, that would be terrible.
Just then, He Lingxiu suddenly stepped forward, her melodious voice ringing in his ears.
“Junior Brother Ji was comprehending the Dao in his room just now?”
Ji You turned to He Lingxiu: “Indeed, Senior Sister, do you have any advice?”
He Lingxiu scrutinized him, her gaze falling on his chest, listening to the surging Qi and blood, her brows slightly furrowed.
Most people in Tianshu Academy followed the path of pure Dao Cultivation. To avoid the Physical Body limiting the Divine Thought,
They would not exert too much effort in Body Refining during the Lower Three Realms.
Even Lingjian Mountain, which Cultivated the way of the sword, actually integrated the Dao into the sword.
But Ji You's overall Aura seemed not to come from his Cultivation, but from his own emanation.
Cultivators lost the opportunity to refine their bodies after forming Spirit Origin. She didn't know why Ji You had cultivated such an Aura.
Did he eat some Medicinal Pill?
He Lingxiu was very curious, but quickly came back to her senses: “Nothing to advise, just curious. It's me and You Buyu who are going to Lingjian Mountain to ask about the Dao this time, so why is it that the closer we get to Lingjian Mountain, the more Junior Brother works as hard as if facing a great enemy?”
“Is that so?”
“Of course. Since coming down from Dan Sect, I've seen Junior Brother spend all his time Cultivating, even more nervously than me, who is about to draw my sword.”
Ji You glanced at her, thinking, you only have to face the direct Disciples of the Sword Peak, but I have to face the fierce and adorable Master Jian of Lingjian Mountain.
She didn't know about the medicinal pool incident yet, but she would definitely ask him in a sarcastic tone why he stayed at Dan Sect for so long, implying he was reluctant to leave and so on.
A woman's sixth sense has always been terrifying, and I'm not good at lying—
That girl definitely wouldn't bear to cut me with a sword, but if she used her feet with full force in the Yingtian Realm, I probably wouldn't be able to withstand it.
It's all You Buyu's fault.
He originally wanted to use a gaze as deep as one would give a dog, combined with his exquisite appearance, to coax Yan Shuyi, and then, like the heroine of an idol drama, disregard the Sect's greater good and impart his innate Spirit Sword Art to her.
But now, he was utterly exhausted.
Ji You sighed and said, “On one hand, it’s because I almost killed a Rongdao Realm cultivator from Lingjian Mountain. On the other hand, it’s probably because the Autumn Tournament is about to begin, and Chu River has been brought back to the Chu family for Dao transmission, so I’m always worried.”
“Chu River—”
He Lingxiu nodded after hearing this, thinking that made sense.
Ji You didn't need to draw his sword on this trip; he was just here as a follower. But outside of this trip, he also had his own difficulties to face.
To be honest, with his talent, he would definitely enter the Inner Courtyard in any given year. Who knew his luck would be so bad as to encounter Chu River?
Ji You saw her deep in thought and didn't disturb her. He then cupped his hands in farewell and left the inn, heading into the city.
Gan'an County was different from remote places like Yuyang County. It didn't have large expanses of wilderness; instead, it was quite prosperous. The reason was that it was located at the junction of Yong Province and Ling Province, and it was a necessary route between Mountain and Sea Pavilion and Lingjian Mountain.
Wen Zhengxin, Ban Yangshu, Pei Ruyi, and Bai Rulong were waiting for him, having agreed to have dinner with Ji You.
Then, the group found a restaurant, and Bai Rulong, under duress from Ji You, voluntarily offered to treat them.
Rulong Immortal Emperor was quite broad-minded. He knew he didn't need to draw his sword, so he was completely in a sightseeing mood.
Wen Zhengxin, Pei Ruyi, and Ban Yangshu, however, were vaguely worried about the potential impact of the outcome of the competition.
As for Ji You, he was even more profound. He not only coveted the Lingjian Mountain's Master Jian but also desired Lingjian Mountain's sword Dao.
“Brother Ji, look, there seems to be a woman with round hips outside the building.”
“No, I’m not looking.”
“?”
Ji You had a righteous expression, his eyes straight ahead, which puzzled Bai Rulong somewhat.
Wen Zhengxin couldn't help but look up, his brows slightly raised, thinking, Junior Brother Ji said he wanted to scrub my back at Dan Sect a few days ago, so why is he so honest today?