Chapter Fourteen: This is the Son of Heaven Among Swords
orpses. Men, women, old and young, beautiful and ugly, all kinds."“Of course not,” Jiang Yan said. “I was born from the qi of Bai Gu Dao, and I need a body belonging to a disciple of the Bai Gu Dao… L...In Zhao Ru Cheng's sprawling mansion, covering nearly ten mu of land, two figures darted in and out amidst flashing sword lights.
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Zhao Ruocheng's hand shook, his long sword flying from his grasp. Meanwhile, Jiang Wang's long sword had stopped at his neck, looking at him with a smile that wasn't quite a smile.
“Amazing!” Zhao Ruocheng exclaimed, “What kind of swordsmanship is this”
While his swordsmanship was still somewhat inferior to Jiang Wang's, it wasn't by much. In past sparring sessions, he could usually win three or five out of ten bouts. But today, after twenty matches, he hadn't won a single one!
Jiang Wang smiled and sheathed his sword. This swordsmanship was indeed a profound art that combined martial arts with the Tao. There were nine forms for practice and five forms for killing. Even though he had only mastered four forms of practice and one form of killing, his understanding of swordsmanship had already far surpassed his previous level.
He considered his combat strength to be quite good. If he encountered the demonic cultivator who attacked him that night again, he would definitely have a chance of winning a fight.
“This swordsmanship was obtained by chance, and it doesn't have a name. You are both scholarly and martial, what do you think would be a good name for it”
Zhao Ruocheng pondered for a moment, "This sword is the Emperor's Sword, it should be named...Purple Qi Comes from the East."
“Good fortune is coming from the east…” Jiang Wang’s eyes flashed with a strange light, “What a good name!”
Just then, he seemed to see a kind of broad and imposing bearing on Zhao Ruchen that he had never seen before.
But it was probably an illusion, because Zhao Ruocheng picked up his fallen sword the next moment, jumped in front of Jiang Wang, and still had that roguish look on his face, grinning cheekily and saying, "Third brother, teach me!"
"Good," Jiang Wang smiled brightly.
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Both of them were masters of swordsmanship in the mortal world and would naturally understand the preciousness of the Violet Qi Arrives Sword Technique. It was completely different from the martial arts techniques prevalent among common people; it was an extraordinary sword manual capable of leading one to enlightenment through martial arts.
Those mighty sword cultivators were in no way inferior to those skilled in Taoism.
Such a sword manual, in the Jianghu would be enough to cause bloodshed. But these two, one readily wanted to learn, and the other casually agreed to teach. It makes this sword manual seem trivial.
When Jiang Wang returned to the Daoist temple, it was already late in the evening.
Besides studying, Zhao Ruchen generally doesn't stay at the Daoist academy. He is a total wastrel.
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While pondering the intricacies of the Purple Qi Eastward Sword Technique in my mind, I didn't notice Li Jianqiu standing with his sword until I reached the doorstep of our dormitory building.
"What are you thinking about You're so absorbed," Li Jianqiu said with a half-smile.
“Some swordsmanship issues.” Jiang Wang faced him openly and asked, “Brother Li, what brings you here”
"No wonder Junior Brother Jiang's swordsmanship is so astonishing." Li Jianqiu casually exclaimed, then said, "Master Dong asked you to go to his place after morning class tomorrow. I saw that you weren't in the dormitory, so I waited for a while."
“Oh, I was at Ru Cheng’s residence all afternoon.” Jiang Wang said, a little embarrassed. “How could I possibly trouble Senior Brother Li by waiting for me You could have just left a message for the servants.”
Inner disciples are served by dedicated attendants who take care of their clothing and food, allowing these seeds of the Dao to focus solely on their cultivation.
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"Since Master Dong has asked me to inform you, I must do it myself. I am not a member of some noble family, too highborn to serve an individual."
"Younger brother is feeling apprehensive," Jiang Wang said, bowing his head slightly.
He was indeed apprehensive, for Li Jianqiu was two grades above him. In that grade, he was one of the outstanding few. It was a foregone conclusion that he would go to Qinghe County Institute for further study; he was one of the most talented students in the entire city institute.
Yet, such a person was standing before his dormitory door, waiting for him, without any sign of impatience.
Li Jianqiu patted Jiang Wang's shoulder, "I think Junior Brother Jiang has unlimited potential, don't be so estranged."
Having said that, he turned and left.
After a night of silence, the next morning as soon as class was over, Jiang Wang went to Dong A's residence.
Apart from Li Jianqiu, there were two other people in the courtyard. One of them was also his senior brother, named Zhang Linchuan. He came from the Zhang family, one of the three prominent surnames in Fenglin City. He was considered to be one of the strongest disciples in the city's academy and had a very high reputation.
He wasn't particularly handsome, but he was tall and graceful, with an air of refinement. His clothes and accessories were all meticulously chosen and elegant.
At this moment, he stood in the courtyard, listening to what the person beside him was saying.
And the other person remaining in the courtyard was unexpectedly Fang Hèling.
Seeing Jiang Wang enter, he deliberately raised his voice, "Zhang Shixiong! Yesterday, the hunters from my estate brought back a pair of good bear paws. Tomorrow, I'll have the master chef at Yueyue Building prepare them carefully. We'll savor them together then."
Zhang Linchuan smiled and nodded.
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Fāng Hélíng turned his head and invited, “Lí Shīxiong should go with us too!”
Li Jianqiu didn't refuse his face, just smiled, "Come when you have time."
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As He De-fang continued to flatter, Li Jianqiu walked a few steps toward the courtyard gate. "Brother Jiang is here"
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It turns out they were deliberately welcoming him.
Jiang Wang hurried a few steps and greeted, "Sorry, I'm late."
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He walked to Li Jianqiu's side and bowed to Zhang Linchuan: "Brother Zhang, good."
He alone seemed to be blind to her elegant crane feathers.
"Good to see you." Zhang Linchuan smiled faintly and nodded, seemingly oblivious to the undercurrent between Jiang Fang and the other person.
But some people just have to emphasize their existence.
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"Hmph." Fang He-ling let out an extremely abrupt snort, then said in a yin and yang manner: "Master Dong has given instructions, even Senior Brother Zhang and Senior Brother Li came early, I didn't even have time for morning class, I rushed over as soon as I woke up. I wonder what kind of qualifications some people have to make Master Dong and the two senior brothers wait for him"
Jiang Wang still ignored him, only bowing to Li Jianqiu and Zhang Linchuan. "My younger brother just finished his morning class and rushed here, absolutely not neglecting the master's order. It's just that morning and evening classes, reciting scriptures and practicing breathing exercises. With the morning bell and evening drum, there is no moment to be negligent."
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Li Jianqiu patted Jiang Wang's shoulder again, showing his closeness: "It's nothing. We arrived early, it wasn't that you were late. The path of cultivation indeed doesn't allow for slacking off. Although my brother Zhang and I don't need to go to the Scripture Hall with our junior brothers to chant scriptures, we still do morning prayers in our room."
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Although Fang Hèling was even more annoyed, he didn't dare to stir up trouble any longer with Li Jiānqiú taking a stance.
At this moment, with a creak of the door, Dong A pushed it open and walked out.
"Are you all here" He surveyed the room, looking stern yet composed.
Four people walked together, bowing and greeting each other: "Master Dong!"
Dong A waved his hand, he was a decisive person who disliked procrastination. He immediately said: "Today I called you here because there is a task to be entrusted to you. You should all know about the previous attack on the outer courtyard by demons, resulting in the death of an outer disciple. The Criminal Investigation Division has been investigating for so long with no results. Our City Dao Institute doesn't necessarily have to wait for them to handle this matter, so I'm assigning this task to you, calculated at the standard of an eighth-rank mission."
Unlike outer sect missions, inner sect missions begin to be graded, typically based on the level of the strongest combat power encountered during the mission. The reward measurement unit is no longer contribution points, but Dao merit.
The difficulty is worlds apart, and the rewards naturally differ greatly. Take the Meridian Opening Pill for example. Outer sect disciples need to contribute a massive amount to exchange for it, while Daoists only need 100 points of merit.
Of course, getting 100 points of honor is not easy either.
Based on this attack by the demon cultivator on the outer courtyard, their power seems to be within the ninth rank. Dong A classified them as eighth rank, which is clearly encouraging.
“Jiang Wangfang and He Ling are the only two disciples with externally manifested Dao Pulses this year. They must be carefully tempered. Linchuan and Jianqiu, you have been practicing for longer, so take the two younger brothers and investigate separately. The mission reward is a 19% split, whichever side finds it first gets 90%."
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Zhang Linchuan and Li Jianqiu both bowed, “As you command, Master.”
Dong A waved his sleeve and went back home, clearly not intending to interfere with what was going to happen next.
Zhang Linchuan was obviously prepared. After a moment's thought, he said: "I have a friend in the Criminal Justice Department. This time, the demon attack has two most useful clues. One is that before the demon attacked, it stayed at the Fuklai Inn for three days and should have left some clues. The other is that a family in Tangshe Town was wiped out, with corpse qi left at the scene, somewhat similar to the demon who attacked our outer courtyard. Brother Li, which way do you choose"
Li Jianqiu said, “This is Zhang senior brother’s intel, so naturally it should be up to Zhang senior brother to distribute it.”
Zhang Linchuan was unsurprised. If Li Jianqiu had any sense, he wouldn't be vying with him at this time. He said these things only to go through the motions. He nodded immediately, "In that case, I'll go to Tangshe Town, and Junior Brother Li will go to Fukelai Inn."
Fang He-ling, standing beside Zhang Linchuan, lit up his eyes. "With Senior Brother Zhang taking action, what can those lowly demons from the left path possibly do to escape"
After finishing his words, he glanced at Jiang Wang again, feeling quite pleased with himself.
Any discerning person can see that Tangshe Town is more suitable for demon cultivators to lurk, and the clues are also clearer. In Fang Hualing's view, for this first-time eighth-rank mission after his debut, he was going to take the biggest share.
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At this time, Zhang Linchuan said to Li Jianqiu again: "Brother Li, how should I bring Jiang Wang"
"Good." Li Jianqiu said calmly.
In fact, the previous positions of everyone implicitly assumed different paths. Jiang Wang and Li Jianqiu were more familiar with each other, while Zhang Linchuan and Fang Huelin both came from the three major surnames.
Although Jiang Wang didn't understand why Zhang Linchuan chose Fang Hualing instead of someone from a closer and more familiar background, he had no right to choose. So, he politely said, "Then I'll trouble Senior Brother Zhang."
Zhang Linchuan and Li Jianqiu were both experienced, so they quickly finished assigning tasks and preparing supplies that might be needed on the mission. Jiang Wang also helped out diligently behind the scenes.
Only Fang Hèlíng remained, her face alternately pale and flushed.
He had a lot of opinions he wanted to express, but couldn't bring himself to say a word."What did she say"He had no doubts about its authenticity.Firstly, Su Qiyun wouldn't need to lie about this. If she wanted to cultivate a relationship, she should have done so the first day they met,...