“Woohoo… my dream of becoming a swordsman…”
“Stop crying, alright? Winning and losing is just part of the game. I might lose to Ice Chunk too… uh, what’s it called… in every profession there are tops, and if all else fails, wanna learn the hammer with me?”
“Woohoohoohoo!!!”
“Alright, alright, how about I compensate you with a broken sword?”
“You don’t understand! This sword is my cherished treasure! It’s my elder’s expectations for me, it grew up with me, I treat it like…”
“Uh, this sword is called Cloud Thunder. I bought it at the Eastern Sea rare treasure auction, ranked among the fine weapons, worth sixty coins…”
“Ugh…”
The shattered dream youth, Tang Liu, tossed aside his ‘cherished’ sword and cradled his new love instead, beaming with delight, as if he were admiring a rare gem.
Li Mo: “……”
If only he had shown this sword earlier, he wouldn’t have had to go around in circles like this, right?
The crowd of onlookers fell silent; after mingling in the martial world for so long, they had seen everything… but this? They had never seen anything like it!
“Ah, such a familiar feeling! Remembering back in Yunzhou City…”
“Honestly, the sword breaking can’t all be blamed on Young Hero Li. Isn’t it a bit exaggerated to pull out a precious sword to compensate someone? Doesn’t he know how precious it is?”
“No, no, no, you just don’t understand Young Hero Li.”
Elder Qian’s face was dark moments ago, because the Qingyuan Sect disciples were clearly outmatched, with dismal results. Now, his face was red—Qingyuan disciples had even challenged higher ranks and left someone in tears, it felt like he was soothing a child, his old face burning.
He shouldn’t have overseen this sparring!
Now what could he say?
Elder Qian glanced at Shang Wu beside him, who was evaluating the spar, since she was known for her fighting skills, and this was one of the rare moments where she could show off.
Shang Wu took a sip of her drink: “Is this right? Nope.”
Elder Qian was taken aback. Shang Wu surprisingly had such insight?
Before he could process this thought, she continued:
“Giving a sword? The essence of the art is to bully the weak! You need to provoke before a fight, and after a fight, don’t you want to humiliate your opponent severely?”
“Just watch me give Young Mo another lesson later!”
Beyond this youthful spar, there were also exchanges for the sect’s elders aiming to foster friendship through martial arts.
“…..” Old Qian wiped the sweat off, figuring that it’s better to take the lead on commentary himself.
With Shang Wu stepping up, he was afraid that the visitors there to congratulate might turn into challengers instead.
Cough “What a thrilling dragon tiger battle! Both sides displayed poise, grace, and their strengths, and even brought us a level-up challenge!”
“In the end, not only did they clash with martial skills, but also fostered friendship—everyone’s happy, everyone’s happy!”
Qian Bufan forced himself to bellow out.
Claps rang out sparsely from the audience.
In the chaos of the crowd, Tian Xun tiptoed trying to peek at what was happening, but couldn’t see a thing, so she jotted down Qian Bufan’s words for materials for Legend of the Sword Hero Li.
Old Qian had quite the voice.
Also hearing this were spies from the Huanmo Sect.
One of the spies thought, “Too bad that Tang Liu didn’t get to test Li Mo’s strength…”
He stealthily slipped away from the crowd and made his way back to the Joyful Hotpot Restaurant.
In a room on the second floor, Yu Tuo Zuo Jin was surprised to see him return so fast. “You found out so quickly?”
“Deputy Sect Leader, things are a bit different from our plans. It seems our peers… may not have the ability to test Li Mo at all.”
The spy reported everything he had seen, including how Tang Liu was weeping after being defeated by Li Mo, and how a sword was given to soothe him.
The two deputy leaders fell silent for a moment, their eyes flickering.
Lingxi Gate Master Mo Chaozong coldly snorted, “It’s just a fourth realm kid. How could such an extraordinary talent turn things upside down? We should focus on dealing with others.”
Si Tu Ding shot him a glance and sighed, “That’s why your Lingxi Gate suffers, while my Divine Sect finds its way through for thousands of years.”
“What? Am I wrong?” Mo Chaozong noticed the contempt in the other’s gaze.
“Let me ask you a question—if a young talent with enormous potential held a life-and-d*ath grudge against your Lingxi Gate, how would you handle it, Master Mo?” Si Tu Ding asked.
Mo Chaozong replied coldly, “Naturally, I’d send a few disciples with higher realms to eradicate the threat, leaving none of their family behind.”
“How much higher?”
“One or two realms higher would suffice.”
One realm higher is like crossing a trench; two realms is like a difference between heaven and earth, akin to crushing an ant—very reasonable.
“And if he escapes?”
“Send someone higher by another realm.”
“Congratulations…”
Mo Chaozong thought Si Tu Ding was praising his flawless plan, but soon realized the latter was slowly saying:
“Letting a tiger return to the mountain leads to deep bl**d feuds; your Lingxi Gate might find itself destroyed in a few decades.”
“What?” Mo Chaozong’s expression froze.
Si Tu Ding sneered, “Even when hunting rabbits, you must use full strength. Talents are mostly unlike ordinary folks, and it’s common that they can fight beyond their level. If every time you only send someone one realm higher, aren’t you just handing them a whetstone?”
“I’m talking about one a realm higher and another two realms higher.”
“They are talents after all! Isn’t it normal for them to break through during crucial moments? That can still be a realm higher.”
“You’re speaking too fantastically; this kind of situation is highly improbable…”
Mo Chaozong felt somewhat unconvinced.
Si Tu Ding’s eyes became profound: “Who said that? When the Da Yu Martial Emperor was still a refugee…”
Mo Chaozong: “…..”
So it’s personal experience, no wonder he looked so pained.
“All in all, we must never underestimate talents like Li Mo.”
Yu Tuo Zuo Jin brought the conversation back to the point:
“Besides, he bears great secrets; we must proceed flawlessly.”
“Secrets…” Mo Chaozong’s eyes sparkled with curiosity, but he held back from asking—knowing too much might not be good.
Si Tu Ding waved his hand, laughing: “Since we’re cooperating, we should be open with each other; it’s fine to tell you.”
“We suspect that Li Mo carries the legacy of Da Shang!”
Yu Tuo Zuo Jin nodded in agreement: “If not for that, we can’t explain where his terrifying background comes from and why his talent is so astonishing, especially since he apprenticed under Shang Wu. If only Yin Hua and his son hadn’t perished, we could’ve known more in detail…”
The downfall of a massive empire buried countless secrets.
The Huanmo Sect long suspected that underneath the Qingyuan Sect lay remnants of the Da Shang uprising, but early on, Qingyuan was just too powerful, denying them any chance to search. Later investigations yielded nothing.
This theory eventually faded away.
After Li Mo and Ying Bing’s rise, they began to take it seriously again.
