The Heavenly Wandering Sword

Chapter 14

Li Jian looked at the one who challenged and sighed, waving his hand. “What is with you young kids and your constant Life and Death. You grow up without loving parents or something?” He rolled his eyes as he began walking off. Lan Yi Fen got even redder in the face and launched an attack with a loud roar. The spirit form of a green hawk was launched from his fist, flying towards the back of Li Jian. Li Jian tilted his body, and made a quick movement with the Divine Sword steps so that he appeared to have shifted just far enough away to dodge it. “Launching an attack from behind at an opponent? How shameless, no wonder your brother was also shameless, running away to cry to you.”

Lan Yi Fen began switching to another move, this time drawing his halberd out of his storage ring and ignited the blade with his spiritual force. “Then see if the Azure Sky Halberd can be dodged by you.” Li Jian frowned at him slightly. “The form is not too bad, unfortunately I have a move that you cannot defeat.” Li Jian looked at him, glaring at him. Lan Yi Fen laughed at him, swinging around the halberd a few times. “You think you have a stronger move than my Lightning Blade Art?” Li Jian laughed and held out both hands, condensing qi force before holding his palms up to his mouth. “Help Sect Elders! Lan Yi Fen is bullying outer sect disciples with deadly spiritual force!” He sent the force of his words echoing through the entire Sect building. Within seconds, an Inner Sect Elder crashed onto the ground.

“Disperse all of you, there will be no attacks upon sect disciples by another disciple. Lan Yi Fen, you are an inner disciple. Don’t shame the Elders with your attack on someone of the outer sect.” The Elder’s eyes glowed dark blue with spiritual force, Lan Yi Fen having no choice but to bow. “This junior gives his apologies, Elder. I must have gotten too excited.” The Elder looked at Li Jian curiously. For someone with no cultivation or spiritual force that he could detect, the boy was able to make his voice heard across the sect building. “Elder is a great saviour, how could I a powerless outer sect disciple survive other wise.” Li Jian bowed and smiled at the Elder. The Elder hmphed before launching himself away.

“That is a curious individual, someone that I must keep my eyes on in the future.” The Elder thought to himself as he flew back to the Hall of Elders. In the Hall of Elders, Ling Feng was there standing in front of the various Elders. “Disciple Ling, please tell us more about what lead to this conflict.” Ling Feng bowed towards all the Elders. He was summoned today precisely because of what had happened in front of the Purple Pavilion that day. Beside him stood Chi Ruyan, who was summoned for the same purpose.

“Honoured Elders. I was walking down the street with two of my fellow disciples. It was the evening so I thought we would find some way of amusing ourselves. Unfortunately, we ran into the disciples of Golden Temple sect. Their realm was much greater than ours, and they simply stated that Third Grade Sects should learn to use the side of the roads like the dogs they were. I refused to get off the road and so they attacked.” One of the Elders leaned forward in his chair and stroked his long white beard. “They are a Second Grade sect, but does that give them the right to do such a thing?”

The Sect Master held up his hand. “Please continue Disciple Ling.” Ling Feng bowed again at the Sect Master’s words. “We were overwhelmed. The last thing I remember is that my meridians were shattered and my cultivation crippled. I lost consciousness after that. Sister disciple Chi Ruyan saw what had happened after that.” The Sec Master gestured for Chi Ruyan to continue the story. Bowing neatly in her blue sect uniform, she began to retell what had happened. “It must have been a loud commotion because the next thing I know, the master we had met previously appeared in front of us. Brother Ling was unconscious, and I was barely holding on. The Golden Temple sect disciple had used a strike while I was defenseless. I felt that at least half my meridians were wasted from that single strike. Then, the unknown master beat down all four Golden Temple disciples and even dared them to call for their Elders.”

She sighed a bit at recalling these events before continuing. “When their Elder came, he launched an attack that was definitely in the Spiritual Realm. But against the martial arts master, it was like a windy day. He cut it apart with a single move and then crippled the Golden Temple Elder in one move. I passed out after that but when I woke up, my meridians were fully healed and it seemed like I had broken through the first level of Golden Core. Brother Ling, always having had more potential had broken through to the second level of Golden Core Realm. Brother Teng Ye as well had broken through to Golden Core Realm.”

The Sect Master nodded and looked at the Elders. “What could be so powerful so as to heal crippled cultivation and then force a breakthrough?” The Medicinal Hall Elder Lian Zhi waved her blue silk fan slowly as if in deep thought. “Did you feel a breath of herbs when you awoke?” She directed her question towards the two disciples who both bowed and nodded. “Yes Elder Lian. For the first day after we awoke, our breath had the fresh scent of herbs for the entire day.” Lian Zhi snapped her fan back and nodded. “It seems like it must be a pill with enough spiritual energy to forcefully repair damaged meridians as well as the body. Not only that, there is a pure enough spiritual energy in those pills to affect a full level breakthrough.”

“What level of a pill is needed to do that, sister Elder?” Geng Tai the Outer Sect Elder asked, sitting back in his chair as he held a cup of jade leaf tea. Lian Zhi flicked her silk fan open and fluttered herself with it for a few moments. “It is a pill that is beyond my capability. Now that it has been confirmed that most likely a pill was used, I planned to go to the Alchemist Association to find out. The best pills that I have heard of so far are the Supreme grade pills. They would create the breath of herbs for at least 20 breaths. Now for the breath of herbs to last a day, that is unheard of. I cannot even begin to imagine what level pill that would be.”

The Sect Master sighed before waving a hand, dismissing the two disciples. Ling Feng and Chi Ruyan both bowed before leaving. “Sect Elders, what do you think we should do about such a Martial Arts Master?” Xing Meng looked around at the other Elders who all nodded at him. “I think, Sect Master, the opinion of all the Elders are the same. This is someone we cannot afford to offend. Anyone who can cripple a Second Grade sect’s elder with one move, as well as someone who has access to such pills… we can only hope that he ignores us at the worst case scenario. Best case scenario, he becomes friendly with our sect, and we can perhaps raise ourselves to a Grade two sect.”

Sect Master Tang Bo nodded and sat back. “Ever since the Spiritblade Sect broke away from the Thousand Sword Sect, we have always been a Grade three sect. Perhaps our fortune might change.

Li Jian sat in the tea house behind the Governor’s palace. It was a very quaint and humble place but he found it’s charms to be irreplaceable. It was run by a kindly family that grew their own tea leaves specially for their tea house and it was a charming brew. Perhaps in their family once upon a time, there had been an herb master. Small flecks of jasmine leaves were balanced with the mellowness of chrysanthemums while the tea itself was chosen to be a full bodied but very herbal flavour. What he enjoyed the most were the light fruit platters offered by the tea house.

The price was quite high for a fruit platter, as many of the fruits were imported. Various chunks of melons as well as different varieties of grapes and berries were placed carefully on a platter for a colourful array. He found himself wondering if fruit could be used for an array before hearing Kon Wang sigh in his head at the idea.

“Relax Kon Kon, you don’t have to be so serious all the time.” He chewed on a piece of honeydew while his sword spirit appeared beside him. Kon Wang had opted to change into a much more casual look for himself, ditching the void black wings he had to look more like a normal person. “Master, they also have pancake wraps with beef on the menu.” Li Jian raised an eyebrow and chewed on a white grape this time, before washing it down with a long luxurious sip from his teacup. He raised a hand and waved over a waitress and ordered two pancake wraps before looking back at his sword spirit who was pretending to have a cute look on his face. “Master is so good to me.”

Li Jian shook his head before picking through the fruit platter for some of the exotic pieces of mango that seemed to be his favourite by far. After a few moments, the hostess brought over two of the pancake wraps with braised beef inside. Li Jian looked outside to review the people who came through the neighborhood here, but by the time he turned back, both pancake wraps were gone. “Why the hell are you named Kon Wang you should be called the Never-Stop-Eating Sword.” Kon Wang huffed and disappeared, turning invisible and floating above. “Master’s mouth is sharper than his sword.”

He was about to retort when he felt a mental message coming from the token he had given Manager Yin Chu. “Great Master, there are those of the Imperial Family here. Lady Bai needs your assistance.” He sighed to himself and left some spiritual stones to pay for his tea before stepping outside to the back alley of the teahouse. Summoning a small amount of spiritual force, he flew up and towards the Purple Pavilion.

“Sister, Father is very displeased at what occurred last time.” Jing Hong said to her Elder sister, Lady Bai. Lady Bai sat back, impassively clad but with her mask off. She had no need to hide behind the veil with her siblings as guests. “Sister Jing, I hope you did not waste your time coming all the way here just to tell me of that. I knew that the moment Uncle left here without me in the carriage.” Jing Wu Die, her brother took a sip from the jasmine tea that had been brought out for them. “Young sister, I hope you will also be careful. On our way here, we were attacked by assassins. Half of the Imperial Guard escort were killed by them”

“Brother, how did you two get away?” Lady Bai looked over her two siblings with concern. “We were lucky, a master happened along and killed them with one strike. If I ever was to find him again, I surely would ensure that he is brought over to support the Imperial family.” Lady Bai was wordless. Another expert brought over to the Imperial family would simply be another growth in strength for her father. “I am glad that you two are safe. But I cannot help wondering why I received a sudden visit from my siblings?” Jing Hong and Jing Wu Die looked each other and sighed. “Sister, Brother Jing Wu Die has been named the Crown Prince. Fourth Brother did not survive the Golden Curse.”

Lady Bai gasped. “The curse? Has he truly fallen to it?” Jing Hong nodded, before standing up and undid part of her robes to show her stomach where her dantian was. There were angry black marks across her stomach, looking like scars that refused to heal. “I am afraid that I am next, big sister. Jing Wu Die would have to practice the Golden Dragon Sword now that he is Crown Prince. I have practiced to the 5th stage and now, the curse will claim me soon. Sister, we are here to seek help.”