At the edge of the Emerald Pool, the giant beast, the Water Qilin, which had been sleeping soundly all this time, suddenly awoke. It turned its head back viciously, its enormous eyes shining with boundless ferocity. The fur along its back stood on end, and it opened a great bloody maw, revealing two long, sharp fangs. It had actually assumed a posture of attack. And its target was none other than the Qingyun Sect disciples standing on the steps.
This Water Qilin was a primeval spirit breed, an ancient strange beast. The instant it unleashed its might, the wind and clouds changed color. The originally azure sky darkened in the blink of an eye, and as it took its first step toward the stairs, the once-calm mountain breeze became a gale, shrieking sharply as it swept across the summit of Tongtian Peak. In the nearby Emerald Pool, closest to the Water Qilin, the surface of the water changed as well. From smooth as a mirror, it began to tremble; then, all at once, it spun violently. The entire pool whirled at tremendous speed, twisting around its center into a deep vortex. From the depths of that whirlpool there seemed to come a rumbling sound. A moment later, everyone heard a thunderous crash, and a column of water suddenly shot skyward from the depths of the vortex. It was as thick as three men’s arms joined together, yet condensed without scattering. It turned in midair, bent downward through the empty air, and, as though driven by some unseen force, descended before the Water Qilin. Graceful as a swimming dragon, crystalline and translucent, it spun and roamed through the air.
At that moment, all the Qingyun disciples standing on the steps—including Qi Hao and the others whose cultivation was the most profound—could no longer maintain their composure. Every face changed; some even turned pale and began to tremble faintly.
The reason the Water Qilin had been able to become Patriarch Qingye’s powerful aid in slaying demons and subduing devils a thousand years ago, and had been revered to the utmost by Qingyun Sect for a millennium, was revealed completely at this moment. Among the five elements—metal, wood, water, fire, and earth—the Water Qilin was a supreme water-type spiritual creature. Judging from this skill alone, commanding water out of thin air without borrowing any external force, summoning a water column of such thickness and keeping it condensed without dispersing, even making it circle and swim endlessly in midair without the slightest sign of strain—its spiritual power was immense, its mental force pure. It had long since far surpassed ordinary cultivators of the mortal world. Even within Qingyun Sect, where experts were as numerous as clouds, not to mention accomplishing this purely through mental force, there were not many who could reach such a level even with the aid of magical treasures.
In that instant, heaven and earth darkened together, wind and clouds surged and churned. The Qingyun disciples, seeing the Spirit Venerable Water Qilin erupt into a thunderous rage never witnessed in more than a thousand years, were all dumbstruck, not knowing what to do. In the time it takes a spark to fly from flint, the Water Qilin roared without cease, its eyes bulging wide, the fury and hatred in them growing ever stronger. It seemed to have sensed some object of deep enmity or extreme loathing and meant to fight it to the death, until one side perished. The thick water column circling before the giant beast also moved faster and faster. Suddenly, with a deafening crash, the enormous water column, bearing endless might, struck toward the Qingyun disciples on the steps with a force that seemed to blot out heaven and earth.
At this critical moment, a sharp cry rang out from midair: “Spirit Venerable, calm your anger!”
A dark green figure appeared as if out of thin air, suddenly standing in midair between the Water Qilin and the Qingyun disciples. It was none other than Qingyun Sect’s sect master, Daoist Master Daoxuan. After five years apart, he still had the bearing of an immortal, his crane-like bones and ethereal air unchanged in the slightest. Only now his brows were tightly furrowed; clearly, he too was utterly perplexed by the Water Qilin’s sudden attack. But the situation was urgent. Behind him were dozens of Qingyun Sect’s finest young disciples, while the water column howling toward him from the front glittered with waves within, faintly revealing the shadows of all manner of ferocious giant beasts. They were plainly savage beasts the Water Qilin had killed in the past; after death, their souls had been seized into the Water Qilin’s body, unable to be reborn. Now, driven by the Water Qilin within the water column, they added even more to its might. Even with Daoist Master Daoxuan’s power to penetrate heaven and earth, he could not help but be startled.
Seeing the water column bearing down upon him, Daoxuan had no way to evade. He could only take a deep breath and recite, “Immeasurable Heavenly Venerable!” Raising both hands, he held them before him as though cupping a sphere in empty space. His left and right hands formed sword-finger seals, moving seemingly slowly yet in truth with urgency, tracing a Taiji diagram in the air before him. In moments, the pattern shone in midair, waves of white light rising, auspicious energy billowing. Then Daoxuan turned, and the dark green Daoist robe upon him swelled without wind. It suddenly slipped from his body and floated away. The Taiji diagram in the air immediately seemed to be driven forward, rushing onto the Daoist robe and branding itself upon it at once. This dark green robe also appeared to be an immortal treasure. Receiving the Taiji diagram, it expanded with a whoosh as soon as it met the wind. In moments, it had grown more than tenfold, stretching across the sky.
With a heavy splash, the water column controlled by the Water Qilin slammed into the enlarged dark green Daoist robe. From within the water column came ceaseless roars, as if those demonic beast souls were howling in furious rage. Under the heavy impact, the dark green robe was immediately driven back several zhang, and the place at its center struck by the water column bulged deeply outward, showing just how tremendous the force was.
As for the young Qingyun disciples standing on the stairs, almost stunned senseless, they only felt a sudden violent wind surge toward them. One after another, they lost their footing. Apart from a few with deeper cultivation who barely managed to hold on, most actually fell left and right. Everyone could not help but turn pale with fear. Had Daoist Master Daoxuan not acted to block the Water Qilin’s thunderous strike, who knew what the consequences would have been?
Zhang Xiaofan’s face was pale. Unable to stand steady, he began to fall to the side. Lin Jingyu caught sight of it from the corner of his eye and was just about to reach out to support him, but unexpectedly his own body lurched, and he too toppled to the other side, unable even to look after himself.
Zhang Xiaofan was greatly alarmed. Instinctively, he let go of the hand he had thrust into his robes, gripping that “fire poker,” and desperately reached out, trying to find somewhere to brace himself. He did not notice at all that the instant his hand left the fire poker, that icy sensation vanished without a trace.
In the air, Daoist Master Daoxuan’s expression was solemn as he stood ready for battle. Behind him, with several swishing sounds, more than a dozen figures appeared, standing in midair at his back. At their head was Daoist Master Cangsong; the rest were the chief seats of the six branches and the elders of each branch. Tian Buyi and Su Ru were both among them, every one of them wearing a grave expression.
At this moment, all the experts of Qingyun Sect were gathered here. Looking across the world, anyone who encountered such a formation would first be seventy percent afraid. Yet this Water Qilin, surrounded by the gazes of Qingyun Sect’s deeply cultivated sect master, chief seats, and elders, showed not the slightest fear. But under everyone’s watchful eyes, the Water Qilin’s eyes, which had originally been burning with rage, suddenly grew calm instead, revealing a strange expression, as if it were utterly puzzled. The mighty water column before it slowly shrank as well, and at last lost control and fell to the ground with a splash, soaking the earth into a wet mess.
By now, the Water Qilin’s imposing aura had vanished, but its massive body still stood there, quite terrifying. It paid no attention at all to the elders in midair. Its eyes only stared at the young disciples on the steps, its gaze sweeping back and forth. It also sniffed the air with its nose, yet seemed unable to smell anything. After a long while, once this strange behavior had been repeated many times, the Water Qilin finally seemed to give up. It shook its enormous head, turned around, and swaggered over to another empty space. There it lay down, rested its head against its leg, narrowed its eyes, and before long, the sound of snoring actually rose again.
Everyone of Qingyun Sect looked at one another, utterly dumbfounded.
Daoist Cangsong was the quickest to recover. He quietly moved beside Daoist Master Daoxuan and said in a low voice, “Senior Brother Sect Master, it is not suitable to let the disciples remain here for long.”
Daoxuan came to himself, glanced at Cangsong, and nodded. “Take the disciples up first. I will go see what is wrong with the Spirit Venerable.” After saying this, his body turned, and he flew toward the Water Qilin.
Cangsong turned back and said in a clear voice, “Just now, the Spirit Venerable was playing a joke on everyone. There is no need to be nervous. Now, all disciples participating in the martial competition, proceed in order to Yuqing Hall.”
The disciples responded in unison, restored their order, and walked upward. But in their hearts, after witnessing that soul-stirring strike from the Water Qilin just now, it was likely that few of them would believe it had been a joke.
※※※
Following behind the others, Zhang Xiaofan and Lin Jingyu entered the grand and spacious Yuqing Hall. Standing within this hall, Zhang Xiaofan suddenly felt memories from the past five years turning over before him, scene after scene.
“Jingyu,” Zhang Xiaofan suddenly said in a low voice.
“What?” Lin Jingyu looked toward Zhang Xiaofan.
Zhang Xiaofan lowered his voice and said, “I suddenly thought of something. In these past few years, have you seen Uncle Wang Er?”
Lin Jingyu’s expression immediately dimmed. Then he shook his head and said, “No. Today is also my first time back at Tongtian Peak. Three years ago, I asked Senior Brother Qi Hao about Uncle Wang Er’s situation. I heard from him that he was still in that deranged state, running all over Tongtian Peak all day long. But with the senior brothers of the main branch looking after him, there shouldn’t be any problems.”
Zhang Xiaofan was silent for a while, then said, “After this competition is over, I want to go see him. Will you go?”
Lin Jingyu nodded and said, “All right. I want to see him very much too.”
At that moment, in the great hall, a green shadow suddenly flashed. It was Daoist Master Daoxuan darting in from outside. The gazes of all the Qingyun Sect elders fell upon him. Daoist Cangsong stepped forward and asked, “Senior Brother Sect Master, the Spirit Venerable…”
Daoxuan raised a hand to stop him and gave him a look. Daoist Cangsong immediately understood and stopped speaking. Daoist Master Daoxuan then turned around as though nothing had happened and said amiably to the dozens of young Qingyun disciples standing in the hall, “Everyone has arrived, yes? Good, good.”
All the disciples bent at the waist together in salute. “Greetings, Sect Master.”
Daoist Master Daoxuan smiled faintly, returned to his seat, and glanced at Daoist Cangsong. Daoist Cangsong immediately stepped forward and said in a clear voice, “Everyone, you are all outstanding talents among the younger generation of Qingyun Sect. Since the founding of our Qingyun line, more than two thousand years have passed. We are truly the orthodox Daoist lineage and the leader of the righteous path. But the ancients said: achievement thrives through diligence and is wasted through play. It is also said: rowing against the current, if one does not advance, one retreats. In order to warn later generations and support young disciples, the ancestral masters of our sect passed down this grand event, the Seven Branches Martial Meet. By now, it has already reached its twentieth session.”
“Ah!” A wave of astonished cries rose from among the Qingyun disciples. Twenty sessions—calculated as once every sixty-year cycle—meant a full twelve hundred years.
Daoist Cangsong looked with satisfaction at everyone’s reaction, then continued, “Today, under the leadership of Senior Brother Sect Master Daoxuan, our Qingyun Sect is flourishing and prosperous, far surpassing the generations before us. Among the younger generation, outstanding talents are too numerous to count. Therefore, after Senior Brother Sect Master consulted with the chief seats of each branch, the number of participants in this grand competition has been specially increased to sixty-four, so as to avoid the regret of leaving pearls lost in the vast sea.”
Hearing this, Zhang Xiaofan could not help looking toward Tian Buyi. Tian Buyi was seated below Daoist Master Daoxuan, his face expressionless, though his eyes showed great impatience. After all, regarding the increase in the number of participants, while it was said to have been discussed with the chief seats of each branch, in truth, was it not still decided by Daoist Master Daoxuan and Daoist Master Cangsong?
Daoist Cangsong continued, “Because this grand competition has twice as many participants, there are also some changes to the drawing of lots. Please look, everyone.” As he spoke, he pointed toward an open space on the right side of the hall. Everyone looked over and saw a large red wooden box placed there, square and upright, with only a small hole on the top just large enough for one arm to reach in.
“Inside that red wooden box, there are a total of sixty-three wax pellets. Each contains a slip of paper, on which are written numbers from one to sixty-three.” The disciples suddenly burst into an uproar. Daoist Cangsong paid them no mind and continued, “After the drawing of lots is complete, the matches will be held according to the numbers. Number one will face number sixty-four, number two will face number sixty-three, number three will face number sixty-two, and so on. In the second round, the winner between number one and number sixty-four will face the winner between number two and number sixty-three, and so on, until the final battle. Do you all understand?”
The Qingyun disciples standing below were silent for a moment. Suddenly, someone called out loudly, “May I ask Martial Uncle Cangsong, if there are clearly sixty-four people, why are there only sixty-three wax pellets?”
Daoist Cangsong seemed to have long prepared for this question. He gave a dry cough and said, “The rules for this competition originally had each of Qingyun Sect’s seven branches sending nine people, with the main branch sending one extra. However, cough cough, because one branch of our fellow disciples has sent only eight disciples in total, there is one person fewer. Therefore, there are only sixty-three people.”
For a time, everyone’s gaze fell upon Tian Buyi, the chief seat of Dazhu Peak. A flash of anger passed across Tian Buyi’s face, but he remained seated upright, not moving in the slightest. Below, the Qingyun disciples immediately broke into noise, discussing it among themselves.
Only after the voices of the crowd had somewhat calmed did Daoist Master Cangsong say solemnly, “However, this is not a difficult matter. Among those sixty-three wax pellets, whichever disciple draws the number one lot will be extremely fortunate. Because there is no number sixty-four opponent, he will receive a bye in the first round.”
As soon as these words were spoken, another uproar rose among the Qingyun disciples. But Qingyun Sect was, after all, a famous and upright great sect, with strict discipline. Though this method seemed rather comical, no one objected.
Daoist Master Daoxuan stood up and looked around. With the dignity of the sect master, silence immediately fell on all sides. Daoist Master Daoxuan nodded and said, “In that case, everyone may go draw lots.”
In the great hall, everyone’s eyes then fell upon the red wooden box. First, nine disciples from the main branch walked out and proceeded one by one to the box, each drawing a wax pellet. Then came the disciples of Longshou Peak.
Lin Jingyu greeted Zhang Xiaofan and also walked out. Zhang Xiaofan watched his back for a moment, then shifted his gaze toward the seven chief seats and the elders seated above. Among these people, from Daoist Master Daoxuan down to Daoist Cangsong, Daoist Tianyun, as well as Shang Zhengliang, Zeng Shuchang, and the other branch chief seats, he had seen them all five years ago. Only the female Daoist nun seated on the last chair to the right was someone he had never met. Judging from the situation, she was most likely the renowned chief seat of Xiaozhu Peak, Master Shuiyue.
Zhang Xiaofan often heard his senior brothers mention this martial aunt. He had heard that Xiaozhu Peak was the only branch of Qingyun Sect that accepted only female disciples. Master Shuiyue herself also possessed extremely deep cultivation and was greatly renowned within Qingyun Sect. The disciples from Xiaozhu Peak had also often performed brilliantly in past Seven Branches Martial Meets.
Zhang Xiaofan looked at Master Shuiyue a few more times and saw that she appeared to be around thirty, similar to his shiniang Su Ru, with an oval face, fine brows, a graceful nose, and a pair of almond eyes bright with spirit. Dressed in a moon-white Daoist robe, she actually possessed an elegant and charming bearing. Behind her stood no elders of the older generation, but rather a female disciple in attendance. She was dressed in white as pure as snow, exceedingly beautiful in appearance, and carried a longsword on her back. The sword sheath and hilt were entirely sky blue, their color bright and vivid, with faint ripples of light flowing across them. One look was enough to tell it was an immortal treasure.
As he was staring in a daze, that young woman seemed to sense his gaze. Suddenly she turned her head, her eyes like lightning, and stared coldly at Zhang Xiaofan. Zhang Xiaofan’s heart shook as though struck by electricity, and his eyes even seemed to sting. Startled, his face flushed slightly. Seeing that the woman’s expression was blank, yet that there was a faint contempt in her eyes, he hurriedly lowered his head. Just at this awkward moment, someone beside him suddenly reached over and tugged him. He heard Tian Linger’s voice say, “Xiaofan, what are you spacing out for? It’s our turn to draw lots.”
Zhang Xiaofan hastily said, “Yes, yes.” As he spoke, he no longer dared look even once toward Master Shuiyue. He turned and followed Tian Linger toward the red wooden box. At this time, only Dazhu Peak and Xiaozhu Peak had yet to draw lots. Led by Song Daren, the people of Dazhu Peak walked one after another to the box, drew their wax pellets, and then returned below the hall. After that, while everyone was checking what number they had drawn, eight female disciples walked out from Xiaozhu Peak’s side, Wen Min among them. The woman in white standing behind Master Shuiyue lowered her head and said something to Master Shuiyue. Master Shuiyue nodded and said, “You go as well.”
The woman in white answered, walked among the young women of Xiaozhu Peak, smiled with Wen Min and the others, and together they went to the red wooden box, drawing the last nine wax pellets.
At this moment, in the great hall, the disciples were all checking their wax pellets. The elders and chief seats seated above could not help becoming nervous as well, their gazes fixed upon their own branch’s disciples, all wholeheartedly hoping that their disciples would draw a good lot. If someone drew the slip marked “one,” naturally that would be best of all.
As if responding to the feelings of their teachers and elders, the young Qingyun disciples below began calling out one by one.
“Ah, I’m twenty-six.”
“I’m thirty-three. Eh, what are you?”
“Oh, I’m forty-seven. I wonder what number my opponent is. Let me calculate…”
…
But after watching the disciples talk for quite a while, no one said they had drawn that precious number one slip.
Daoist Cangsong frowned, coughed twice, and said in a clear voice, “Who drew the number one lot?”
His voice was resounding, and for a time it suppressed all other sounds. The great hall fell silent. After a long while, from within the crowd, a small voice suddenly spoke up, carrying a trace of surprise and caution, in a tone as if even he himself could not believe it. “Re-reporting to Martial Uncle Cangsong, it—it is with me.”
Everyone looked over together and could not help being stunned. They saw Zhang Xiaofan standing among the crowd, holding a slip of paper in his hand, frozen in place, while his eyes darted toward Tian Buyi. He spoke timidly.