Chapter 266 - 171: Such Refined Interests

Chapter 266: Chapter 171: Such Refined Interests

Leng Xuanshuang didn’t understand.

She had seen the Dragon-Seeking Pavilion Master perform his magic. His power was such that he could command the wind and rain, like an Immortal gracing the mortal world. But even someone that powerful was still subject to constraints.

’Just how glorious must the truly supreme Immortals be.’

"If you are willing to shed your royal identity, Your Highness, and no longer concern yourself with the affairs of the mortal world, I can guide you onto the Immortal Path... You must not believe the rumors, Princess. If you enter the Immortal Path improperly, you will be corrupted by the Desire Demon."

Leng Xuanshuang rose and said coolly, "Thank you for your time, Pavilion Master."

The Great Xia’s Eldest Princess did not linger. She left the Dragon-Seeking Pavilion and boarded the carriage waiting at the entrance.

But instead of returning to the Imperial Palace to review the day’s memorials, the sound of hoofbeats carried her to the Royal Ancestral Temple, not far from the Dragon-Seeking Pavilion.

Leng Xuanshuang stepped into the ancestral hall. The Incense Fire was burning slowly.

Her gaze swept across the heavy, gilded memorial tablets until it landed on one that was different from the rest—it was shrouded in cloth. Only then did she step forward.

She removed the cloth from the tablet. Leng Xuanshuang gazed at it for a moment before neatly folding the cloth and setting it aside.

She slowly knelt on the cushion, her spine as straight as bamboo. With her hands pressed together, she bowed in reverence.

This memorial tablet was rather special. Within the Great Xia, the subject of this particular Emperor was almost a complete taboo.

This was because the tablet belonged to the only Empress in the history of the Great Xia.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Young friend, what do you think of Lu Ban Palace’s woodworking arts?"

Li Dashu chuckled. He sat in the same spot where he had been watching the grand competition, gazing at the Sword Testing Platform from a distance. Only now, instead of Xue Mingjing, Lu Changyuan and Su Youwan were with him.

"They’re alright," Lu Changyuan said, carefully observing the Lu Ban Palace’s creations. At that moment, the Lu Ban Palace disciple, Wang Yi, had conjured a massive wooden snake to attack his opponent.

The wooden snake was incredibly lifelike, as if it were real. It possessed immense strength and felt no fear of injury.

’Quite interesting,’ Lu Changyuan thought.

Between the aid of the wooden construct and Wang Yi’s own considerable strength, the cultivator from the minor sect couldn’t hold out for long. With a wry smile, he conceded, ’As expected of a disciple from the Nine Gates and Twelve Palaces,’ and stepped down from the stage in defeat.

Lu Changyuan smiled. ’In the Cultivation Realm, people cultivate all sorts of things,’ he mused. ’Even a carpenter can achieve the Great Dao.’

Li Dashu was mostly just watching for the novelty of it. "I heard Lu Ban Palace has a giant wooden man they keep as a trump card," he said, "but that Old Man Gong Shu refuses to show it to me."

"That’s normal. You don’t go showing your trump card to just anyone."

Li Dashu thought about it and realized it was true. It was just like how he never showed his pig-butchering knife to anyone.

’Strange.’

’This young friend... he doesn’t look old, yet somehow he seems even older than me.’

’It’s a strange feeling.’

Su Youwan sat beside Lu Changyuan, stroking the Red Fox’s fur.

"Miss Qiu is about to go on stage."

Hearing this, Lu Changyuan looked over.

On another platform, Qiu Yuehan took the stage with her sword. Her opponent was a disciple from the Sword Control Sect.

This disciple had quite a story of his own.

A year ago, the Blood Demon Palace had created a Blood Pill, passed it off as a Heavenly Repair Pill, and placed it in Upper Jade Capital. The event caused great turmoil, and in the end, the Blood Pill was snatched away.

It was this very disciple.

With the help of that Blood Pill, he had cultivated to the Fourth Realm. His Sword Control Technique allowed him to secure a spot in this competition, and he had even managed to survive the Dream Demon’s rampage.

Li Dashu glanced over. "Young friend, I’m guessing three moves."

Meaning the Sword Control Sect disciple would be defeated within three moves.

Lu Changyuan took a sip of his tea.

"One move."

’Three moves? That’s underestimating the Nether Monarch. Even one move is a bit generous.’

Sure enough.

It took only a single strike—and Qiu Yuehan had even held back—to send the man flying from the stage.

’Boring.’

"Hm?"

Lu Changyuan frowned and turned his attention to another platform. A seemingly ordinary young man was locked in a fierce, evenly-matched battle with Nan Xun.

’For someone from a minor sect to fight on par with Nan Xun from the Daoist Sect... that’s impressive.’

Su Youwan said softly, "That person makes me feel... uneasy."

Lu Changyuan felt it too.

"Qingcao told me that man’s name is Wang Dayun," Li Dashu said. "His aptitude is average, his disposition is average... but his luck is absurdly good."

’Good luck?’

’My luck used to be pretty good too,’ Lu Changyuan reflected.

’Otherwise, I never would have been able to Enter the Dao at fifty and still cultivate all the way to the Sixth Realm.’

"How good?"

Li Dashu looked as if he’d recalled something amusing.

"It’s said that when Wang Dayun first entered the Cultivation Realm, he was being hunted down. When he was grievously injured and on the brink of death..."

Lu Changyuan’s eye twitched. "Don’t tell me he fell off a cliff?"

"No, not that." Li Dashu said with a sigh of resignation. "He was smashed into the ground, but it just so happened that the crater he formed contained an Ancient Strange Pill. He ate it, his power surged, and he killed his enemy."

’You’ve got to be kidding me.’

?

Lu Changyuan thought his own experience of falling off a cliff with the Sun and Moon Palace Master was absurd enough, but this guy’s luck was even more ridiculous.

"And that’s not all," Li Dashu continued. "Something similar happened three times. Every time, he’d just happen to dig something up. Either it would heal his injuries, or it would be a Divine Weapon. That sword of his, for instance, is said to have belonged to a man called the Heart-piercing Cultivator. Oh, and he has a pair of hammers he found, too. He actually tends to use the hammers more in fights."

’No wonder that sword looked so familiar.’

’I was the one who killed that Heart-piercing Cultivator. He hadn’t fallen to the demonic path, he just enjoyed piercing the hearts of mortals for his cultivation. So in the end, I pierced his.’

Su Youwan said softly, "Nan Xun is about to lose."

Neither Lu Changyuan nor Li Dashu responded to the silver-haired maiden.

Because it was the truth.

In every grand competition, a dark horse from a minor sect would emerge to upset a disciple from a major one. They just hadn’t expected the Daoist Sect to be on the receiving end this time.

This Wang Dayun really was something else.

Lu Changyuan said, "After this match, the top six will be decided, right?"

In his eyes, this competition was a mere formality. The sword he’d offered as a prize was destined for either the Daoist Sect or Miao Yu Palace.

’Either way, it’s staying in the family.’

"That’s right. That kid Qingcao did his best. He didn’t embarrass me."

Li Dashu thought Li Qingcao had already done quite well.

In previous years, it was incredible if even one or two Fifth Realm cultivators appeared in the Celestial Dao Grand Competition. This time, there were a full four of them.

’The Cultivation Realm is truly a place where the new generation comes to surpass the old,’ he thought, ’...only for the old generation to beat them senseless.’

The silver-haired maiden squeezed the fox’s tail. "Miss Qiu, Miss Bai Lu, Li Jianzi, Wang Yi, Wang Dayun, and Xue Nichang."

Those were the top six.

Lu Changyuan looked at Su Youwan. The maiden’s delicate profile was flawless from any angle.

"Miss Su, if you were to compete, what place do you think you’d get?"

Su Youwan tucked a strand of white hair behind her ear. "I don’t know... but I probably wouldn’t dare to beat Miss Qiu."

’What’s that supposed to mean?’

Lu Changyuan noticed the corners of the silver-haired maiden’s lips twitch almost imperceptibly, and then he understood her meaning.

’You wouldn’t dare to beat the Little Fairy in a White Skirt either, would you?’

He was speechless.

"Alright, we should head back. We’ll come see the rest tomorrow."

Because of the chaos caused by the Dream Demon, the Qingcao Sword Sect had to temporarily change the competition’s format. The champion would now be decided tomorrow.

Lu Changyuan stood up and walked with Su Youwan toward the pavilion where they were resting.

It was still early, not even lunchtime yet. The sun felt pleasantly warm on their skin.

Summer was approaching.

Lu Changyuan thought he could hear the drone of cicadas.

The silver-haired maiden, who had been walking beside Lu Changyuan, suddenly stepped half a pace ahead of him, forcing him to stop.

"Miss Su?"

Su Youwan had been holding Mei Zhaozhao with both hands. Now, she suddenly shifted to hold Mei Zhaozhao with just one arm, freeing her other hand. She waved that slender, pale hand in front of Lu Changyuan’s eyes.

Lu Changyuan was confused. "What is it?"

"Is Youwan’s hand nice to hold?"

’Why is she suddenly asking this?’

"It’s fine."

"Then why won’t you hold Youwan’s hand?"

Before Lu Changyuan could react, the silver-haired maiden took his hand. She nodded. "Let’s go."

’What is she up to now?’

Feeling rather helpless against her, Lu Changyuan could only let her be.

Walking down the road holding the maiden’s hand would have made for a beautiful scene at sunset. Unfortunately, it was high noon, and the two of them were walking under the blazing sun... ’Oh well,’ he thought.

The part of his heart connected to Su Youwan stirred. He could almost feel a sense of... joy from the silver-haired maiden.

But looking at her lovely face, he saw she remained completely expressionless.

In silence, the two of them returned to the pavilion.

Qiu Yuehan was leaning against a pillar with her arms crossed. Her black dress seemed to flash with a cold light under the sun.

Her eyes fell on their joined hands, and a smirk played on her lips. "Well, aren’t you two in a fine mood."