Chapter 5

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Chapter 5: Title

“I’m Suiyin. Your names?” Though addressing both, her entire gaze remained fixed on Xia Shi, sharp with scrutiny.

“Wen Zhishu.”

“Xia Shi.”

Suiyin’s hands froze mid-hair adjustment. “Funny. The old wretch who buried me alive also bore the Xia name.”

Wen Zhishu shot Xia Shi a sideways look.

Xia Shi: “……”

As Suiyin finished tying her hair, the ground quaked violently. The distant desert bubbled like boiling water, swelling into human-sized sand mounds that erupted without warning.

Nearby cultivators barely had time for reaction before sand snakes shot out, fangs sinking into necks. Spiritual power drained instantly, leaving shriveled corpses where men stood moments before.

Panicked screams filled the air as inexperienced cultivators fled. Seasoned warriors drew blades, cutting down serpents with steady hands.

Amidst exploding dunes and swirling yellow sand, a pointed spire emerged. A jeweled pagoda rose skyward, hovering mid-air within breaths.

“Linglong Pavilion! It’s Linglong Pavilion!”

“The pavilion’s appeared!!!”

Even retreating cultivators turned back hungrily at the sight.

But beneath the floating treasure trove writhed sand snakes – some thumb-sized, others thick as barrels – all thirsting for cultivators’ spiritual power.

None dared advance. Not even those flying on swords risked approaching the pavilion’s unknown defenses.

“Spineless fools!” A mocking voice rang out. A sword cry followed as blazing sword light pierced towards Linglong Pavilion.

“Reckless,” Suiyin remarked coldly, leaning against a tree.

Wen Zhishu nodded. “True. Acting first in an unclear situation isn’t wise.”

No sooner had they spoken than the sword light froze midair.

The crowd below barely registered the cultivator’s Taiyi Sect robes before a Blood Mist exploded without warning.

Nothing remained of the body.

“A barrier,” Xia Shi murmured, narrowing her eyes.

She’d once entered a Purple Mansion Secret Realm left by a powerful cultivator. It held nothing but endless mist, with a Shenwu Sword floating at its center. Barriers had surrounded the blade – the dead cultivator’s final defense against thieves.

To sword cultivators, their blade meant everything.

Yet Linglong Pavilion, which she’d visited before without encountering barriers, now bore one inexplicably.

Lingyang Jun’s Purple Mansion Secret Realm restricted cultivation levels. None present could break this barrier.

“We’re leaving,” Xia Shi declared.

“Can’t enter yourself? Don’t block others’ paths!” A mocking voice cut through. Behind them stood four youths – three men, one woman. The speaker, a sneering youth at the front, wore Canghai’s signature dark blue disciple robes. Spiritual energy rippled across their outer garments like pale waves, marking them as Canghai’s elite.

Jiang Ying glared down at the three women. These Golden Core-less nuisances had no business here. They belonged at home finding husbands, not cluttering his sight.

A surge of spiritual power. Sword energy flashed toward his forehead.

Jiang Ying twisted aside. The attack grazed his cheek – had the Second Leader’s black feather token not deflected it, half his skull would’ve vanished.

Onlookers turned. Canghai disciples facing trouble? With Linglong Pavilion barred, this clash offered entertainment.

The Nine Realms’ top sects – Sanqing Realm, Canghai, Qingyun City, Taiyi Sect, Liujin Pavilion – stood unchallenged for millennia. None dared cross them lightly.

“Who?!” Jiang Ying roared, clutching his bleeding face.

A girl lounged against a tree, smiling faintly at his rage.

“Brother Ying!” A disciple pointed at Suiyin. “Her!”

Jiang Ying’s scowl deepened at her Sanqing Realm inner disciple robes.

Xia Shi spoke sharply, “Offend Sanqing Realm’s inner disciple? Can you bear that consequence?”

“Sanqing Realm?” Jiang Ying sneered. “Canghai fears no one!” He drew his sword – and lunged at Xia Shi.

Xia Shi blinked. Why attack her instead of Suiyin?

She dodged, guarding her own blade. Using spiritual power risked exposing secrets to Suiyin. Better to evade.

“Xia Shi!” Wen Zhishu called out anxiously, a sudden stab of pain in her chest forcing her to lean against a withered tree while gasping for air.

Jiang Ying grew angrier as she kept dodging without drawing her sword, his attacks turning fiercer as he aimed to force her into combat.

The surrounding cultivators had quietly cleared the area, creating space for the duel. Wen Zhishu, still breathing unevenly, was pulled further back by Suiyin.

Clutching Suiyin’s sleeve, Wen Zhishu pleaded, “Miss Sui, please help her.”

“Relax. That fool can’t beat her,” Suiyin replied, tilting her head. “Though I do wonder why she refuses to draw her sword while defending.”

Suiyin observed their exchange keenly. Though Jiang Ying’s attacks were forceful and wide-sweeping, Xia Shi evaded each strike with effortless precision—a level of control over strength and timing few could achieve.

She concluded: Xia Shi’s swordsmanship was extraordinary.

“Draw your sword!” Jiang Ying barked, realizing she was neutralizing his techniques without even using her blade or spiritual power.

Spotting a dried branch, Xia Shi smirked. “If you insist.”

She stretched out her hand, and the branch flew into her grip as though it were a sword.

Gasps rippled through the crowd.

Jiang Ying’s weapon wasn’t legendary, but it was still superior. Using a branch? An outright insult.

_How arrogant_, they whispered.

Suiyin’s eyes gleamed with anticipation. Xia Shi’s audacity ignited a familiar battle-lust, her blood humming with excitement.

Jiang Ying’s face contorted. To mock him with a branch instead of a proper sword? Unforgivable!

“I’ll kill you!!!” he roared.

The moment the branch touched Xia Shi’s hand, her demeanor shifted. Gone was the lethargy, replaced by razor focus.

She always fought earnestly, regardless of her opponent.

It had been years since her last proper duel.

Jiang Ying’s strike unleashed a vortex of sand and dead leaves, the sword’s tip driving a lethal whirlwind.

“The Mountain-Toppling Strike of Canghai Swordsmanship?” Xia Shi remarked, meeting the blade with her branch. “You’ve mastered it poorly.”

Still withholding spiritual power, she blurred forward using pure swordsmanship, materializing before Jiang Ying.

He flinched, hastily raising his sword to block—but his technique shattered like glass.

A wavering mind negates all training.

Xia Shi’s strikes came faster, her branch precisely limiting Jiang Ying’s counters until he faltered.

Knowing her brittle weapon couldn’t clash directly, she controlled the spacing between their blades. A sharp flick to his wrist disarmed him. The branch then whistled past his cheek, impaling the tree behind him.

The duel ended in moments—Canghai’s disciple defeated by a branch.

“Bravo!” Suiyin began clapping, sparking cheers from the crowd.

“Incredible!!”

“Fellow Immortal, you’re unmatched!!”

“Victory with a branch against Canghai’s swordsmanship? Unheard of!!”

“A rogue cultivator? Since when do they reach such heights?”

Suiyin walked over to Xia Shi and praised, "Impressive swordsmanship!"

Jiang Ying trembled with anger, his fists clenched until the joints cracked. He’d been defeated by a woman before this crowd – a woman wielding nothing but a branch.

How could he lose to a woman?

His right wrist swollen and useless, Jiang Ying swiftly bent to grab his sword with his left hand, pointing it at Xia Shi with bloodshot beast-like eyes burning with murderous intent. "Again!"

Suiyin rolled her eyes dramatically. "Couldn’t win with your dominant hand, yet expect victory with the other?" How pitiful – a swordsman who couldn’t accept defeat. The very sword must feel disgraced in his grasp.

Jiang Ying suddenly redirected his blade towards Suiyin, roaring, "Stay out of this! Silence!"

All traces of humor vanished from Suiyin’s face. Her fingers stiffened as a translucent sword body began materializing – she utterly despised being threatened with blades.

But before she could strike—

Clang!

Jiang Ying’s sword went flying. Choking on fury, he spun to confront the offender, only to grow more enraged. "Jiang! Xi! Nian!"

Jiang Xinian approached with Liu Sheng following. Behind his fan, Liu Sheng made exaggerated approving faces at Xia Shi, enthusiastically thumbing up.

Incredible!

Xia Shi acknowledged with a polite nod, while Suiyin reciprocated Liu Sheng’s thumb gesture, their shared amusement sparking silent laughter.

Jiang Xinian retrieved his Shenwu Sword. Disregarding Jiang Ying’s wrath, he collected the fallen weapon and forcefully sheathed it at Jiang Ying’s waist. Leaning close, he growled lowly, "When outmatched, Jiang Ying, don’t disgrace Canghai’s reputation publicly."

"You dare strike me?!" Jiang Ying’s fury found new focus. Being disarmed by Jiang Xinian stung worse than losing to a branch-wielding woman.

Jiang Xinian met him with icy detachment. "Complain to your Master then. Remember clearly – my father Sect Master Jiang Liu leads Canghai Sect. Swallow your pride or choke on it."

Years of internal conflict plagued Canghai, with two rival factions prevented from splitting only because Jiang Xinian’s father controlled the Canghai realm’s secret key.

Jiang Ying glared venomously before suddenly grinning. "Keep that arrogance, Jiang Xinian." He stormed off, pausing to cast an undisguised murderous gaze at Xia Shi and Suiyin.

"Ying-shixiong…" A disciple attempted to speak, but faltered under Jiang Ying’s glare.

"Move!"

As they departed, Jiang Xinian turned triumphantly to Liu Sheng. "Well? Did I radiate authority earlier?"

Liu Sheng applauded enthusiastically. "Magnificent! That petty man will be seething all night!" Finally cutting down that second Leader’s lapdog who’s been swaggering through Canghai!

Jiang Xinian addressed Xia Shi. "Your skills are extraordinary! Might I ask which sect you hail from? Sanqing Realm? Taiyi Sect?" Both being prominent sword cultivator sects.

"Rogue cultivator Xia Shi."

His attention shifted to Suiyin.

Suiyin thought for a moment, unsure of where she had learned from, then followed Xia Shi’s example and said, "Rogue cultivator, Suiyin."

Liu Sheng exclaimed in surprise, "You two ladies are both rogue cultivators? That’s truly remarkable!"

"Broken! The barrier’s broken!"

Someone shouted, and everyone turned. Not only had the barrier shattered, but countless sand snakes in the desert lay severed in two.

The golden doors of Linglong Pavilion swung open, revealing torrents of spiritual energy pouring forth. Even without claiming treasures, cultivating amidst such energy would be worthwhile.

Jiang Xinian stared at the doors. "Why did they open so abruptly?"

Even if someone had broken the barrier, how could they vanish without trace? It happened silently, without witnesses.