VHSTS CH4

This boundless spiritual power filled the entire expanse of space, so immense it seemed to condense into a sea, pressing down until not a single disciple present could lift their head. Only Luo Jianqing, standing at the center of the high platform, raised his head slightly, as if long accustomed to such terrifying spiritual pressure, narrowing his eyes to gaze into the distance.

His voice arrived before his person.

Following that vast, majestic streak of golden sword light, a figure dressed in white finally appeared.

His long black hair was bound simply with a white jade crown, and his white brocade robes were embroidered with intricate, tight patterns. With wide robes and flowing sleeves set against the azure sky, he was so dazzling that one couldn’t help looking up in reverence. Standing at the pinnacle of all living beings, he looked down at the crowd beneath his feet with a calm, indifferent gaze, his eyes finally coming to a slow rest on the high platform.

Luo Jianqing held his head high, separated by several hundred meters—one in the heavens, one on the earth—gazing steadily at that person.

As if separated by thousands of years of missed time, Luo Jianqing stared silently, and that person looked back at him with equal detachment. After a moment, the bloody nail marks dug into his palms burned as though about to catch fire. Luo Jianqing raised his hands in a deep bow and spoke solemnly, “Shifu¹Shifu (師父): Master or teacher. Unlike Shizun (師尊, a more formal/reverent address for an immortal master), Shifu carries a closer, almost paternal bond between master and disciple..”

Standing amidst the clouds, Xuanlingzi responded lightly, “Mn.”

Peak Master Xuanlingzi Zunzhe of Taihua Mountain’s Yuxiao Peak was the undisputed number one expert in the cultivation world today. He had reached Foundation Establishment at fifteen, formed his Golden Core at twenty-eight, and achieved Nascent Soul at fifty-six. Having cultivated for barely three hundred years, he had already become the sole cultivator under heaven to step into the Deity Transformation realm—the only cultivator in five thousand years with the hope of ascending to immortality.

Countless disciples widened their eyes in shock upon seeing Xuanlingzi; even the newly inducted disciples stared at him in disbelief. Yet they only dared to look for a brief moment before timidly averting their gazes.

That was the spiritual pressure of a Deity Transformation Zunzhe. Merely looking at him for a short while left them trembling in fear.

Among this crowd of disciples, none was more excited than Li Xiuchen. He gazed ecstatically at the noble Zunzhe in white robes. Although he couldn’t look for long either, his heart was bursting with uncontrollable excitement: Xuanlingzi is here! Xuanlingzi is going to take me as his disciple!

Not a ripple of emotion stirred on his cool, handsome face; Xuanlingzi seemed completely oblivious to the surrounding disciples. His gaze locked tightly onto his own disciple. Beneath the sunlight, the golden sword mark between his brows emitted a faint golden glow. With narrow eyes, long eyebrows, a nose carved like a blade, and pale lips, he truly looked like an unworldly, aloof immortal, inspiring awe and reverence.

Xuanlingzi scrutinized his disciple on the high platform, while Luo Jianqing kept his head bowed in silence.

After a moment, Xuanlingzi’s eyes narrowed, and he suddenly teleported onto the high platform.

His sudden appearance startled Xie Zizhuo, who was standing beside Luo Jianqing. Xie Zizhuo hurriedly called out a few greetings of “Xuanlingzi-shishu²Shishu (師叔): Martial uncle—specifically, a junior martial brother of one’s own master (as opposed to Shibo, a senior martial brother)..” Xuanlingzi gave him a slight nod, and Xie Zizhuo promptly stepped down from the platform, not daring to stand alongside this genius shishu of his.

“Why do you not raise your head?” Xuanlingzi asked in an indifferent voice.

Luo Jianqing remained in his bowing posture without answering.

His handsome brows knitted together into a knot. Xuanlingzi lowered his eyes to look at his stubborn disciple and asked again in a low voice, “As soon as I emerged from closed-door seclusion, I heard you were organizing the Inter-Peak Grand Competition for this batch of new disciples. Your flying sword has finished forging—do you not wish to see it?”

Luo Jianqing kept his head lowered, showing not the slightest reaction.

This caused Xuanlingzi to furrow his brows tightly, seemingly unable to fathom what had gone wrong with his usually considerate disciple. He pressed his thin lips together, about to ask again, when an excited shout suddenly rang out from below the platform: “Zunzhe! I am Li Xiuchen. I have admired Zunzhe for many years and wish to become a disciple under Zunzhe‘s tutelage!”

Xuanlingzi acted as though he hadn’t heard a thing. With one hand clasped behind his back, he continued looking down at his own disciple.

After a long pause, the overwhelming, razor-sharp spiritual pressure receded heavily like an ebbing tide. All the disciples near the high platform had turned pale with fright; even Li Xiuchen, who had been shouting moments ago, was drenched in cold sweat from terror. Meanwhile, the eldest shixiong in white standing at the very center of that pressure had been forced down so hard he couldn’t even straighten his back, yet he kept his teeth clenched tightly the entire time without uttering a single sound.

Xuanlingzi let out a heavy sigh and withdrew his pressure. “Return to Yuxiao Peak.”

Luo Jianqing suddenly lifted his head in surprise, looking at the other man and asking in astonishment, “Shifu?”

Only then did Xuanlingzi notice that at some point, his usually well-mannered, decorous disciple’s eyes had turned completely red. That extraordinarily refined, dignified face was covered in dense beads of fine sweat, damp stray hairs clinging to his skin—stripping away a touch of his ethereal aura and lending him instead a breathtaking, soul-stirring beauty.

Showing no reaction to this, Xuanlingzi nodded with an indifferent expression. “Go back, and I will show you your new flying sword.”

Overjoyed beyond measure, Luo Jianqing immediately answered, “Yes!”

With that, Luo Jianqing handed the remaining affairs of the Inter-Peak Grand Competition over to a nearby disciple, preparing to return with his Shifu. Unexpectedly, at that very moment, Li Xiuchen actually ran up to the edge of the high platform, tilted his head back, and shouted loudly, “Xuanlingzi Zunzhe, this disciple wishes to enter Yuxiao Peak and become a disciple under your tutelage!”

As soon as these words fell, another eerie silence descended upon the entire venue.

The smile on Luo Jianqing’s face vanished instantly. He curled his fingers tightly, digging his fingernails back into the bloody marks on his palms from earlier. Those marks had originally begun to scab over, but piercing them again caused fresh blood to seep out. The sharp pain stabbing into his flesh made Luo Jianqing narrow his eyes as he looked down at Li Xiuchen below the stage.

On the surface, Li Xiuchen wore a sincere, earnest expression, yet inside, his heart was already leaping with joy.

Once he became Xuanlingzi’s disciple and entered Yuxiao Peak, he would receive the meticulous guidance of the number one expert in the cultivation world. He would reach Foundation Establishment at twenty and form his Golden Core at forty—perhaps he couldn’t match Xuanlingzi’s speed, but his accumulated foundation would erupt with unstoppable momentum! Lack of innate talent didn’t matter; he had his golden finger. Taking this first step to secure a great master would allow him to go further and further in the future!

Wonderful! Even though Luo Jianqing had acted a bit strangely this time, Xuanlingzi still showed up, so he could still enter Yuxiao Peak just the same.

In his delight, Li Xiuchen failed to notice what was happening up on the high platform.

Clad in cool white robes with the golden sword mark gleaming brightly on his forehead, Xuanlingzi cast a downward glance at Li Xiuchen, then turned his head to look at his own disciple. His expression was cold and detached as he asked in a calm tone, “Jianqing, has Yuxiao Peak started accepting disciples?”

Hearing these words out of nowhere, a heavy weight suddenly lifted from Luo Jianqing’s shoulders, and the towering hatred in his chest dissipated in an instant. He stared at the man in astonishment, all rationality vanishing without a trace at that moment.

Beneath the radiant sunlight, that person looked at him with the same indifferent gaze as always and spoke those words. The bitterness and heartache buried deep in his heart—pain that hadn’t faded across two lifetimes—suddenly seemed to ease a fraction.

Luo Jianqing parted his lips softly, only realizing when he spoke that his voice had already gone hoarse.

“…Shifu, no.”

“Then let us go.”

“Yes.”

Everything happened far too quickly. Li Xiuchen stared blankly at the master and disciple, unable to snap out of his daze for a long time. By the time he came to his senses, the two had already vanished from the Outer Mountain in a streak of golden light, leaving behind only Li Xiuchen standing beneath the high platform with a face full of anticipation and crowds of shixiong and shidi staring at him.

“Yuxiao Peak hasn’t taken in disciples for how many years now? Why is this new shidi so stubborn?”

“I heard that back in the day, Xuanlingzi-shishu himself was the sole disciple of Yuxiao Peak. Now that Yuxiao Peak already has an eldest shixiong, he actually thinks he can still get in?”

“Yuxiao Peak’s standards for taking disciples are sky-high; this guy isn’t qualified at all. Xuanlingzi-shishu has transcendent spiritual roots, and so does Luo-shixiong. This guy doesn’t even seem to have spiritual roots—how could Xuanlingzi-shishu ever spare him a glance?”

Li Xiuchen widened his eyes, staring blankly in the direction the two had disappeared. Only after he was escorted to Haoming Peak and left inside his assigned room did he mutter as if his soul had left his body, “Impossible, impossible, impossible… How could this happen? How could this happen? Where did things go wrong? Where… Huh? Luo Jianqing?!”

At this thought, Li Xiuchen felt as though he had been struck by lightning. After a moment, he burst out cursing aloud, “Right! That little girl was supposed to be struck to death by lightning—why did Luo Jianqing suddenly show up?! And today, why didn’t Luo Jianqing attack and injure me?! Luo Jianqing, Luo Jianqing… Could he have transmigrated here too?! Damn it, Luo Jianqing, who the hell are you?!”

Luo Jianqing heard none of Li Xiuchen’s curses. He followed Xuanlingzi all the way back to Yuxiao Peak, and before long, two simple, unadorned bamboo cottages came into view. Surrounding the cottages was a dense bamboo forest; emerald-green bamboo swayed gently in the breeze, stirring up a soft rustling sound.

Upon returning to the bamboo cottage, Xuanlingzi retrieved that longsword from his storage ring.

“This sword measures three chi and seven cun³Chi (尺) & Cun (寸): Traditional Chinese units of length. One chi is roughly 33.3 cm (about 1.1 feet), and one cun is one-tenth of a chi (~3.33 cm or 1.3 inches). Three chi and seven cun is roughly 1.23 meters (about 4 feet). in length and weighs three hundred and twelve jin. It was forged using the Ten-Thousand-Year Profound Iron, Thousand-Year Thunder Crystal, and low-tier fourth-grade Thunder Pill you brought back earlier. Its greatest strength lies in its speed, and it can draw down ten thousand zhang⁴Zhang (丈): A traditional unit of length equal to 10 chi (roughly 3.33 meters or 11 feet). “Ten thousand zhang” (wanzhang, 萬丈) is a common literary hyperbole meaning “boundless” or “reaching into the heavens.” of thunder and lightning to fight alongside you. It qualifies as an Earth-grade magic treasure.” As he spoke, Xuanlingzi held the sword in one hand and extended it to his disciple. “Jianqing, from this day onward, it is your natal magic treasure⁵Natal Magic Treasure / Benming Fabao (本命法寶): A spirit weapon or artifact bound directly to a cultivator’s soul and life force. It grows stronger alongside its owner, though if destroyed, the cultivator suffers severe spiritual backlash.. Give it a name.”

A blue-green sword gleam flickered faintly. The razor-sharp blade seemed capable of piercing the very air, though it was temporarily sealed by Xuanlingzi’s spiritual power. The blade trembled lightly, as if unwilling to submit within this small bamboo cottage, while Xuanlingzi held the hilt steadily, waiting for his disciple to accept it.

However, Luo Jianqing stared continuously at the sword, hesitating to respond.

In his previous life, he had named this sword Zhuiyin (Chasing Sound).

His Shifu had asked in surprise why he chose such a name, and he had replied, “This sword excels in speed and can chase the speed of sound; therefore, it is called Zhuiyin.”

Back then, his Shifu had simply nodded lightly without asking further, yet only Luo Jianqing himself knew the true hidden meaning behind that name.

The Peak Master of Taihua Mountain’s Yuxiao Peak held the Daoist title⁶Daoist Title / Daohao (道號): High-ranking cultivators often adopt a formal Daoist title upon reaching a certain status or realm, leaving their birth name (benming, 本名) behind. Xuanlingzi, while his true birth name was Wuyin (No Sound).

Zhuiyin, Zhuiyin—was he chasing the speed of sound, or was he chasing Wuyin?

Gazing at the sword, a dull ache slowly spread through Luo Jianqing’s heart. After a moment, he reached out and took the sword. The longsword, which had been clamoring restlessly just seconds before, suddenly quieted down obediently the moment it entered Luo Jianqing’s hands. A streak of blue-green light flowed across the blade, and the sword let out a low, resonant hum.

Xuanlingzi watched this scene with satisfaction, knowing the sword had acknowledged its master. Yet before he could think further, he heard his disciple say in a low voice, “Shifu, its name is Shuangfu.”

Xuanlingzi’s entire body jolted. He raised his head to look at Luo Jianqing, and only after a long pause did he ask, “…Why?”

Luo Jianqing chuckled softly and said, “‘Thunder startles and lightning scatters; snow splashes and frost floats.’ Since this sword can summon ten thousand zhang of thunder and lightning, let it be called Shuangfu.” As soon as Luo Jianqing finished speaking, the longsword trembled slightly, as if echoing his words.

Luo Jianqing smiled as he looked at the sword, then turned to step outside to test it in the bamboo forest. Unexpectedly, just as he turned around, Xuanlingzi’s cool, indifferent voice sounded from behind him: “Jianqing, you… Huh? What happened to your hand?”

In the very next instant, a cold hand suddenly caught Luo Jianqing’s wrist and pulled him back.

___

Footnotes:

• 1
  Shifu (師父): Master or teacher. Unlike Shizun (師尊, a more formal/reverent address for an immortal master), Shifu carries a closer, almost paternal bond between master and disciple. ↩︎
• 2
  Shishu (師叔): Martial uncle—specifically, a junior martial brother of one’s own master (as opposed to Shibo, a senior martial brother). ↩︎
• 3
  Chi (尺) & Cun (寸): Traditional Chinese units of length. One chi is roughly 33.3 cm (about 1.1 feet), and one cun is one-tenth of a chi (~3.33 cm or 1.3 inches). Three chi and seven cun is roughly 1.23 meters (about 4 feet). ↩︎
• 4
  Zhang (丈): A traditional unit of length equal to 10 chi (roughly 3.33 meters or 11 feet). “Ten thousand zhang” (wanzhang, 萬丈) is a common literary hyperbole meaning “boundless” or “reaching into the heavens.” ↩︎
• 5
  Natal Magic Treasure / Benming Fabao (本命法寶): A spirit weapon or artifact bound directly to a cultivator’s soul and life force. It grows stronger alongside its owner, though if destroyed, the cultivator suffers severe spiritual backlash. ↩︎
• 6
  Daoist Title / Daohao (道號): High-ranking cultivators often adopt a formal Daoist title upon reaching a certain status or realm, leaving their birth name (benming, 本名) behind. ↩︎