Volume 3 Chapter 48

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Volume 3 Chapter 48: Sword Unveiled

On the majestic and steep Jiuhua Mountain, celestial paths wound through the misty clouds, occasionally crossed by flying cranes whose cries echoed through the air, maintaining an atmosphere of peace and harmony typical of an immortal’s abode.

The numerous junior disciples left on Jiuhua Mountain were still busy with their cultivation and pursuit of immortality, completely unaware of the strange occurrences during the recent Newcomer Competition. They also had no idea of the earth-shattering changes within Jiuhua Mountain over the past few days!

At the foot of Jiuhua Mountain, a modest hall stood. Above its entrance, a plaque hung horizontally, inscribed with the golden characters "Nine Pole Hall."

Compared to "Linghua Hall," one of the symbols of Jiuhua Gate, "Nine Pole Hall" appeared quite unremarkable, lacking any grand or peculiar features, without magnificent carvings or exquisite decorations, presenting a simply ancient and plain appearance.

However, for the higher-ups of Jiuhua Gate, the significance and importance of "Nine Pole Hall" were no less than that of "Linghua Hall," perhaps even surpassing it.

For this "Nine Pole Hall" is the hub of the "Nine Pole Array," the mountain-protecting formation that Jiuhua Mountain takes great pride in. The Elders in charge of protecting the mountain and those skilled in formations are stationed here year-round to control and monitor everything about the array.

But now, the "Nine Pole Hall," which should be bright, appears rather dim, with a faint scent of blood in the air.

A beam of light shot through the open doors of the hall, pushing back some of the darkness inside. It created a path of light, making the areas untouched by the light seem even darker.

Elder Hou, the elder protecting the mountain, who ranks just below the sect leader and Supreme Protector of Jiuhua Gate, stood silently at the end of the light path. His clothes were wrinkled, his face had traces of blood, his eyes vacant and devoid of any luster.

If Lv Qingshang were here, he would find it hard to believe that his master, who always cared about his appearance, could look like this.

Especially the vacant eyes, as if he had lost all his wits.

And at Elder Hou’s feet lay several corpses, their blood dried up, indicating they had been dead for several days.

Judging by their appearance, these corpses were not young when alive. Though lifeless now, it was clear they had been powerful experts, the very Jiuhua elders who had guarded the "Nine Pole Hall" with Elder Hou.

Yet, Elder Hou paid no attention to the bodies at his feet. Despite his vacant gaze, his hands were constantly moving, with fingers changing at an unseen speed. Under his hands’ movements, the ancient and mysterious copper pillar in the center of the "Nine Pole Hall" flickered with multicolored lights continuously.

This copper pillar is the extraordinary treasure "Nine Pole Pillar" used by Jiuhua Gate to control the "Nine Pole Array"!

If someone were floating in the sky outside Jiuhua Mountain at this moment and used the "Sky Eye Skill," they would discover that the protective mist outside Jiuhua Mountain was also violently fluctuating, as if undergoing some intense change.

After a long while, as Elder Hou’s gestures ceased to change, the light on the copper pillar also stopped altering, and the thick clouds outside Jiuhua Mountain also halted their movements.

After completing all this, Elder Hou stood quietly with his hands down, like a puppet without a master.

Inside the hall, near the entrance, three figures silently hid in the shadows beside the door.

One of them was an elderly man in black clothing with a face full of authority, another was an old man in simple robes, and the other was a creature covered in scales with snake-like eyes.

The elderly man in black gazed at Elder Hou’s lifeless eyes and sighed softly, once again doubting his actions this time.

For the position of sect leader, to make a name in the cultivation world, he cooperated with those people, not only ruining Jiuhua Gate’s thousands of years of reputation but also killing many fellow disciples he had known for years. Jiuhua Gate’s hard-won vitality suffered another significant loss, and although he had strategies for this, was it truly worth it?

With a slight sigh in his heart, the elderly man told himself that some things, once the first step is taken, cannot be stopped; not everything can be started anew.

"Besides, the position of sect leader was rightfully mine over three hundred years ago! All I’m doing is taking back what should have been mine."

With this thought, the old man in black regained his former determination and said to the elder beside him and the creature, "Stay here and control Junior Brother Hou. Once Zhang Hualing and his group return, trap them in the ‘Nine Pole Array’."

"Yes, as you command," the elder in hemp clothing replied with a respectful bow.

"Hiss… You don’t need to say, I understand that well. Hiss…" the creature added.

As the creature spoke, it flicked its long, slender snake tongue, sending chills down one’s spine.

The elder looked at the creature with a flash of disgust in his eyes but said nothing more, merely nodding slightly before turning and walking out of the hall.

As he stepped outside, the blinding sunlight caused a slight pain in his eyes, which had been accustomed to the darkness.

It was then that he suddenly realized that since he’d started cooperating with those people, he had unknowingly become used to the dark.

Could it be due to a change in his state of mind?

The old man in black chuckled to himself but didn’t dwell on it, perhaps not daring to think too much. Instead, he stepped onto a cloud, which swiftly carried him towards "Linghua Hall" midway up the mountain.

As the white cloud transported him through the sky, lower-level disciples of Jiuhua Mountain who saw him respectfully bowed, indicating that this old man held a high position at Jiuhua Mountain.

The old man did not pause or glance at the disciples below. He simply flew swiftly to the front of "Linghua Hall" and entered by raising his head.

Inside the hall, several elders had been waiting for quite some time.

The old man in black nodded slightly to the elders, then walked to the end of Linghua Hall and confidently sat in the seat originally belonging to Zhang Hualing.

That seat is meant for the Master of Jiuhua.

Seeing that the elders did not object to his actions, the old man in black nodded with satisfaction, then softly asked, "Brother Liu, how far is Zhang Hualing and his company from Jiuhua Mountain now?"

An elder quickly stood up, bowed, and said, "Respected sect leader brother, they are still half a day’s journey away."

The old man in black nodded slightly and slowly closed his eyes, saying nothing more.

Seeing the old man in black fall silent, the elder with the surname Liu cautiously asked, "Brother sect leader, Zhang Hualing and the others are about to return. What should we do now?"

Even after hearing Elder Liu’s question, the old man in black still did not open his eyes, merely uttering a single word.

"Wait."

…

Half a day later, Zhang Hualing, along with Xu Qingfan and the others, finally reached the base of Jiuhua Mountain after two days of travel.

Ever since Xu Qingfan had shown Zhang Hualing the note he obtained from Wang Qingjun, neither he nor Zhang Hualing had spoken a word. As for the last line of the poem, "Avenging Buddha for a thousand years," Zhang Hualing did not elaborate, insisting Xu Qingfan ponder it himself.

Gazing at the once-familiar yet now unfamiliar Jiuhua Mountain, Xu Qingfan was filled with deep emotions.

It had only been just over ten days since he left, but Xu Qingfan felt as if he had been gone for years. The Newcomer Competition had been so eventful that returning to Jiuhua Mountain felt like a lifetime had passed.

Upon reaching the mountain’s base, Zhang Hualing clasped his fingers in a series of gestures directed toward Jiuhua Mountain, causing the illusionary barrier outside the mountain to ripple. Then, a voice came from within Jiuhua Mountain.

"Is it Senior Brother, the sect leader? Back so soon? Why are there so few people returning? Where are Senior Brother Zhou and the other disciples?"

It was the voice of Elder Hou, the guardian elder of Jiuhua Mountain.

Upon hearing Elder Hou’s voice, Zhang Hualing seemed to breathe a small sigh of relief, then called out, "There were some unexpected events during the Newcomer Competition. We’ll discuss it further after we return to the mountain."

With that, Zhang Hualing moved without pause. After reaching Jiuhua Mountain, he raised his right hand and a fire talisman quickly flew from his hand, connecting with the protective array outside Jiuhua Mountain, and a portal of light appeared from the illusion surrounding Jiuhua Mountain.

Once Zhang Hualing saw the portal form, he did not hesitate and swiftly led the elders and disciples through the portal.

But just as the cultivators were entering the portal, an unexpected change occurred.

Previously, as soon as a Jiuhua Mountain cultivator entered the portal, the true view of Jiuhua Mountain would appear before them. However, this time, as the cultivators entered the portal, they found themselves in a chaotic scene; countless dark clouds obscured the sky and earth, with fine golden lightning flashing amidst the black clouds, and the original scenery of Jiuhua Mountain was nowhere to be seen.

Seeing this vision, the cultivators’ faces turned drastically, and when they turned back, they discovered that the portal had already vanished.

Zhang Hualing, observing the scene before him with a serious expression, shouted, "Junior Brother Hou, why are you doing this? Come out and explain it clearly!"

Zhang Hualing’s voice boomed with authority, even more so than Li Tianying’s soft call to Xu Qingfan on Huandao Island.

Under the majesty of Zhang Hualing’s voice, countless black clouds around the cultivators surged.

"Senior Brother Zhang, please don’t blame Junior Brother Hou; it was all my idea."

After a long moment, a voice sounded.

As the voice faded, the black clouds before everyone slowly parted, revealing an elderly man in black clothing with a stern face.

Upon seeing the old man, the cultivators present couldn’t help but exclaim in surprise.

For the elderly man in black was none other than Zhou Huahai, the Supreme Protector of Jiuhua Mountain, who was supposed to remain on the Zhantai.