First Immortal of the Sword

Chapter 1098 - Su Xuanjun Must Die

After a moment’s silence, Su Yi asked, “There must be some reason for your suspicions. What makes you think Qing Tang comes from outer space?”

Meng Tianjun didn’t even pause to think. “The cultivators of the Wilds, almost without exception, know nothing of the stars beyond the Wilds. But Qing Tang is different. She doesn’t just know about the Church of the River of Stars; she knows the distribution of power amongst the stars too, and she even…”

Meng Tianjun hesitated. “Over the years, she’s occasionally brought up our leader, and she called him… she called him…”

Here, Meng Tianjun’s expression filled with obvious dread, and he dared not go on.

Su Yi tapped the armrests of his wicker chair. “The Fisherman?”

Meng Tianjun stiffened, and the look on his face changed dramatically. “Fellow Daoist, how did you learn that title?”

Even in the stars beyond, few knew that the leader of the Church of the River of Stars had such a title. Only the tiny handful who stood at the peak of the starry skies, those with positions comparable to their leader’s, dared call him that!

“I said it already: your leader’s clone killed itself on the banks of the Reincarnation Pool,” Su Yi explained casually.

“....”

Su Yi continued, “That aside, is there anything else suspicious about her?”

“There is.” Meng Tianjun took a deep breath, suppressed his emotions, and said, “His Excellency Shang warned us not to underestimate Qing Tang, and he said that her identity wasn’t simply ‘the ninth legacy disciple of the Grotto of Abstruse Force.’”

Su Yi rubbed his forehead. He’d already guessed that Qing Tang had another identity, and that it was most likely just as Meng Tianjun said. She was probably from the stars beyond the Wilds!

“Eighteen thousand years ago, the young mistress of the Studio of the Heart took on the name Song Chai and infiltrated the Grotto of Abstruse Force. Eighteen thousand, nine hundred years ago, Qing Tang became my legacy disciple…

“If Qing Tang is also from the depths of outer space, that means she slipped in right under my nose, and that despite the passage of thousands of years, she never revealed anything out of the ordinary…”

Here, Su Yi’s heart suddenly sank. He was no longer in the mood to chat.

He rose from his wicker chair and carried Meng Tianjun out of the immortal cave.

Outside of the Allmist Spirit Mountains.

Su Yi raised his hand and undid the power sealing Meng Tianjun’s body. “Go back and tell Qing Tang that before I kill Pi Mo, I’ll give him the chance to explain himself. Tell her I’ll do the same for her.”

His tone was casual, without the slightest ripple of emotion. Once he’d said his piece, he turned and left.

Meng Tianjun was stunned, and he looked bewildered, as if he dared not believe that Su Yi had really let him go.

A little while later, he came back to his senses and scampered off.

……

When he returned to the immortal cave, Su Yi sat cross-legged and resumed meditation.

After refining the Dark and Gold Essence within Sky Profound Academy’s Dark and Gold Ruler, Su Yi’s cultivation was already nearing the peak of the Profound Illumination Realm.

He predicted that if the Heavensdeath Demon Empress returned with a Dark and Gold Treasure, he’d be able to temper his cultivation base to the peak of the realm extremely soon!

…

The Demons’ Elysium.

The peak of a black mountain that pierced the clouds.

“I did indeed see Su Xuanjun, and I won his trust. We decided to turn your plan against you and have me pretend to capture him before ambushing you together,” said the Heavensdeath Demon Empress, her hands behind her back. Her fiery red dress billowed around her, like an unearthly red lotus swaying in the wind.

“Oh?” The Sixth Warden was briefly stunned, but then, he laughed, not at all concerned. “Everyone says that when Su Xuanjun conducts his affairs, he disdains resorting to trickery. They say that when he encounters an obstacle, he simply cuts it down. Now… it seems he doesn’t quite live up to his reputation.”

He was thin and dressed in coarse hemp clothing. His features looked as if they were hewn of rock, and he currently sat before a stone table sipping from a cup of tea. His every gesture made him seem steady and unshakable.

“It’s not that he doesn’t live up to his reputation, but that he was only able to proclaim himself sovereign within the Wilds. He’s naturally on guard and fearful after hearing rumors of the stars beyond,” the Heavensdeath Demon Empress said flatly. “But I can say with certainty that he’s mastered the secrets of reincarnation, as well as the secret method of opening Dark and Gold Treasures. More importantly… he’s most likely the person your supreme leader is searching for.”

The Sixth Warden’s eyes silently lit up with startling light. After a moment’s silence, he said, “Fellow Daoist, could you capture him alive?”

The Heavensdeath Demon Empress shook her head. “It’d be too risky. It’s not worth risking my life over.”

The Sixth Warden suddenly chuckled. “I know what you’re thinking.”

He suddenly took a jade slip out of his sleeves and passed it to her from afar. “This jade slip contains a portion of the secrets of the Three Realms of the Path of Heaven’s Ascension. It’s not a cultivation technique, but it’ll help you get a clear picture of some of what lies ahead.”

The Heavensdeath Demon Empress accepted it, but she didn’t even look at it. “Earlier, when it came to gathering Dark and Gold Treasures, the Nine Heavens Pavilion wasn’t at all honest with me. You obviously know how to tell which treasures contain Dark and Gold Essence, but you deliberately hid that from me to take advantage of me. If you want any further assistance from me, I need more sincerity than that.”

The Sixth Warden thought for a moment. “Very well.”

He then slipped two more treasures from his sleeves, a jade pendant and a copper seal.”

“Both of these are Dark and Gold Treasures. They’re covered in a mysterious sealing power. Even I find the seal difficult to undo. If you can make Su Xuanjun undo the seals, both of these treasures are yours.”

He then tossed them to her from afar. “That ought to be enough sincerity for you.”

The Heavensdeath Demon Empress suddenly turned around, and her bright eyes stared directly at the Sixth Warden. “How many Dark and Gold Treasures do you have in total? I want to hear the truth. If I discover that you’ve lied to me, I wouldn’t mind burying every last representative of the Nine Heavens Pavilion in the Wilds, not even if it kills me!”

The Sixth Warden’s gaze focused, and he said, “There are only four left.”

“Very well. Then let’s act in accordance with our original plan. Once Su Xuanjun, Pi Mo, and his backers have determined a victor, I’ll step in and kill him.”

With that, the Heavensdeath Demon Empress turned to leave.

The Sixth Warden watched her disappear from view, then took a sip of tea and gazed into the sea of clouds. If you dare deceive me, there will no longer be any need for the Demons’ Elysium to exist in this world.

Shortly after, a man in dark robes approached from afar. He had a sword case on his back.

“Warden, Holy Son Qin Feng of the Church of the River of Stars’ Solar Palace has been killed by Su Xuanjun.” The man in dark robes inclined his head in greeting, then reported, “I discovered that I am incapable of capturing Su Xuanjun. I estimate that even a Profound Serenity Emperor with mastery of a supreme Celestial Law wouldn’t be a match for him.”

The Sixth Warden was stunned, and his eyes flashed. This news left him stunned.

A little while later, he said softly, “He’s only in the Profound Illumination Realm, but he has such unbelievable combat strength. Do you think it has something to do with his mastery of the secrets of reincarnation?”

The man in dark robes shook his head. “It’s hard to say.”

“You can go back. Later, once we’ve captured Su Xuanjun, I’ll ask him myself.” The Sixth Warden waved him away.

“Yes, sir.” The man in dark robes clasped his fist and bade his respects once more. Only then did he turn to leave.

……

The Grotto of Abstruse Force.

Within a palace.

Meng Tianjun knelt, head touching the ground. His mind and body felt completely stifled.

The moment he returned, he reported everything that happened during the battle before the Middle Province Wang Family’s gates. He dared not leave out the slightest detail.

Shang Tianqi stood in the centermost seat, his expression dark and overcast. He didn’t utter a word.

However, irrepressible murderous intent permeated the air around him. The air within the hall seemed to solidify, stifling Meng Tianjun so badly he could barely breathe.

Meng Tianjun didn’t even need to think to know that Holy Son Qin Feng’s death had infuriated Shang Tianqi, the First Libationer of the Solar Palace!

A while later, Shang Tianqi rasped, “With Qin Feng’s abilities and the Star-Swallowing Alms Bowl, he should have been able to take down any of the Wilds’ early-stage Profound Unity Emperors without difficulty. So why… was the Swordmaster of Abstruse Force’s reincarnation enough to kill him?”

Here, he looked up at the still-kneeling Meng Tianjun. “Is Su Yi really that strong? Did he really kill Qin Feng in a single slash?”

There was no doubt about it. Shang Tianqi still couldn’t accept all of this!

Meng Tianjun’s forehead broke out in cold sweats. His heart clenched, and he lowered his head so far that he was practically burying it in the dirt. “Esteemed Libationer, your subordinate wouldn’t dare lie about this.”

“Mm,” Shang Tianqi grunted slowly, then suddenly asked, “Su Yi said the leader’s clone met with disaster in the Netherworld. Do you think that’s true?”

Meng Tianjun didn’t even pause to think. “With the sect leader’s all-encompassing abilities, there’s absolutely no way!”

Sang Tianqi let out a long sigh, his expression shifting and uncertain as he said gravely, “But all these years have passed, so why… hasn’t his clone returned from the Netherworld yet?”

Meng Tianjun shuddered, and a chill coursed through his heart. He suddenly realized that the Libationer was starting to suspect that the leader’s clone really had met with disaster!

The atmosphere within the hall was suddenly tense and stifled.

Shang Tianqi rubbed his temples and waved. “Go see Qing Tang. Tell her what Su Yi said, word for word, and see how she reacts. Also, pass on a message for me.”

Here, his eyes flashed with murderous light, and he said emphatically, “The reincarnation of the Swordmaster of Abstruse Force… must die!”

His raspy voice contained incontrovertible determination.

“Yes, sir!”

Meng Tianjun went off to carry out his orders. After leaving the hall, he quickly found Qing Tang by the side of a lake.

Before he could even open his mouth, Qing Tang said casually, “Did my master send you to deliver a message?”

She reclined in a wicker chair, bathed beneath the light of the heavens, her eyes bright and clear as she gazed at the clusters of lotuses. Her tone was calm and casual.

Meng Tianjun was briefly stunned. He nodded. “That’s right.”

A nigh imperceptible hint of a smile tugged at Qing Tang’s lips, and she muttered to herself, “I suspected as much. Otherwise, given his disposition, there’s no way you’d have made it back alive.”

Meng Tianjun felt thoroughly uncomfortable, and his expression was instantly unsightly.