Chapter 71 - 68: Little Junior Sister
Faster.
Faster still.
So Jiang Jiayi thought.
The strongest sword in the world was the Daoist Sect Master, but the fastest and sharpest was she. Her True Sword Dao was far faster than the Sect Master’s Dao.
The Wooden Sword tore through the air, threatening to rip open the void itself. A continuous series of sonic booms thundered across the sky.
She had pushed her speed to its absolute limit, yet it still felt too slow.
A terrifyingly sharp aura gathered at the tip of the Wooden Sword. The Great Sun in the sky responded in kind, seeming to coat her blade in a hazy layer of light.
Everyone for a thousand miles around heard the cry of the sword and watched their own blades tremble.
Countless swords stirred restlessly, as if poised to soar into the sky and follow this Innate Sword Body into battle.
Why was the Daoist Sect able to suppress the White Realm?
First, the Daoist Sect Master’s swordsmanship was unparalleled under heaven, taught by the Chang’an Daoist himself. Second, the Sect’s Innate Sword Body could calm rivers and mountains and pacify the four seas with a single stroke of her sword.
With the two of them combined, even if all the world’s Yao Guang cultivators attacked at once, they wouldn’t stand a chance.
Such a Yao Guang... her sword mirroring the setting sun, the last rays burning like fire—A Sword from the West!
The Wooden Sword accelerated once more.
For a moment, it seemed to shatter space itself.
It didn’t end there.
Jiang Jiayi kept swinging her sword.
A Sword from the West consumed immense energy, yet she unleashed it again and again. Beneath her slender brows, her eyes surged with turbulent Sword Intent.
She was not a disciple of the Chang’an Daoist and didn’t know the Four Seasons Sword Technique, but she had inherited A Sword from the West nonetheless.
Jiang Jiayi wasn’t sure if Lu Changyuan was the Chang’an Daoist, but as long as there was even a sliver of a chance, she would give it her all.
Xia Lianxue watched this scene in a daze. Then, with a delayed reaction, she reached out her hand. The aura of the Time Dao began to flow, restoring Jiang Jiayi’s condition.
"I’ll restore your Magical Power! You just focus on swinging your sword!"
The Time Dao and the Sword Dao erupted in unison.
Tens of millions of miles flashed by in an instant, a blur of wind and moonlight.
The sounds of wind, thunder, and whistling trailed endlessly in the sword’s wake.
The unseen and unknowable was now right before them.
They had reached Celestial Mountain.
"Quick!"
Her eyes narrowed. Her sword pierced the heavens, heading straight for the heart of Celestial Mountain.
The Daoist Sect Master resided on the Celestial Mountain Peak, while Jiang Jiayi’s own hall was at its base.
Only the two of them lived on this Celestial Mountain.
The other Daoist Disciples were stationed on the surrounding peaks, forming a protective ring around Celestial Mountain.
The sight of that fierce streak of red light made their hearts pound in their chests.
With one slash of her sword, Jiang Jiayi tore through Celestial Mountain’s protective ward. In a flash, she was inside her quiet meditation garden, finally letting out a breath of relief.
The large tree in the courtyard was just as she had left it. Returning to this familiar place, Jiang Jiayi could finally let her guard down.
A surge of True Qi backlashed within her. Jiang Jiayi’s face went pale, and her aura fell into disarray.
Her Magical Power was depleted, her very Origin damaged.
A voice drifted down from the peak.
"Jiayi, I saw the Blood Thunder descending, but then it suddenly vanished... Why are you so grievously injured?!"
Jiang Jiayi pushed herself upright and called toward the peak, "Ancestor Red Simurgh tried to defy the heavens and change her fate, so she was punished by the Blood Thunder. She became half a Painting Demon. I was wounded while fighting her."
"So that’s what happened. Bring her up. After I’ve had a look, you can go to the Celestial Pool on the back of the mountain to heal your wounds."
The voice was ethereal and unconcerned.
Jiang Jiayi glanced at Xia Lianxue, giving her a meaningful look, then turned to Qiu Yuehan. "Follow me up the mountain."
Qiu Yuehan was stunned, at a loss for words.
"You don’t need to say a single word. I’ll do the explaining."
Jiang Jiayi steadied her breathing and said softly, "Don’t be afraid. She won’t eat you."
Qiu Yuehan was silent for a moment.
’The Daoist Sect Master, the most powerful person in the world, wanted to see her.’
’What could she possibly want with me?’
Qiu Yuehan was nervous. No one could learn they were about to meet the Daoist Sect Master and not be.
The wind swept over the mountain peak.
The clouds slowly parted, revealing a magnificent grand hall on the peak.
Qiu Yuehan followed behind Jiang Jiayi, taking small steps. Though her expression remained placid, she was inwardly panicking.
An ethereal, immortal voice drifted from the hall. "I was keeping an eye on the Desire Demon, so I didn’t pay close attention to the Blood Thunder. Tell me, what happened?"
In the distance, a celestial crane let out a cool, clear cry. With the sound, a light breeze stirred and the bright moon seemed to wax and wane.
Qiu Yuehan’s heart stirred.
Jiang Jiayi stated calmly, "Ancestor Red Simurgh attempted Possession of the Miao Yu Palace Master, and the Palace Master, in turn, defied the Celestial Dao. That is why the Blood Thunder descended."
"Is that so?" The Daoist Sect Master was still reclining on her side. "If that’s what you say, then that’s what it is. The Desire Demon is making a move; perhaps it means to try descending again."
Jiang Jiayi paused. "What should we do?"
"We do nothing. As long as I am here, its main body cannot descend."
The moment the words fell, Qiu Yuehan felt herself seized by an unseen force. Unable to move, she floated into a curtained alcove.
She could only see a pair of long, slender legs, fair as jade, resting on soft white silk. The exquisite figure upon the bed was a sight that could make one forget the very existence of immortals.
From her silhouette alone, one could tell that her beauty must be otherworldly.
"So this is my little junior sister?"
’Little junior sister?’
Qiu Yuehan’s pupils contracted to pinpricks.
It was no secret that the Daoist Sect Master was the disciple of the Chang’an Daoist. In the eyes of the world’s Sects, the master and disciple pair were equally domineering in their ways.
What’s more, unlike the Chang’an Daoist of old who had his constraints, this Daoist Sect Master was utterly without fetters. She was the sort of person who went wherever she pleased, which frankly made her even more terrifying than him.
She sat on Celestial Mountain observing the world, descending at will to beat up anyone who displeased her.
Qiu Yuehan’s thoughts raced. Though she had her suspicions about Lu Changyuan’s identity, she still found it hard to believe that the Old Monster was actually the Chang’an Daoist.
"Ah!?"
She snapped back to her senses, only to find her clothes pulled open. The Daoist Sect Master had risen at some point and was now standing right in front of her.
The Daoist Sect Master wore a Platinum Mask, but it didn’t cover her eyes.
Qiu Yuehan saw those eyes. ’That Old Monster must be the Chang’an Daoist!’ she thought. ’This is his disciple!’
’The look in their eyes is exactly the same!’
"Little junior sister, don’t squirm. Let me have a good look at you."
A hand as white as jade slid from Qiu Yuehan’s neck down to her shoulder, then began to meticulously trace the Demon Pattern.
"It really is him... my unscrupulous master. You have terrible luck, to have been ravaged by him."
Qiu Yuehan could see pity in those eyes... and also... anger!?
The Daoist Sect Master reached out and caressed Qiu Yuehan’s cheek. "My master always did love this type of cold, aloof Fairy. He gets a sense of accomplishment from... reeducating them. A practitioner of the Red Dust Sword Dao, no less. A Fairy fallen into the Red Dust... that is just his brand of sick fun."
Qiu Yuehan felt a chill pass over her cheek, leaving behind a cold that seeped into her bones.
Jiang Jiayi’s voice was cold. "If you slander the Chang’an Sect Master again, I will not hesitate to cross swords with you."
"You seem more protective of my good-for-nothing master than I am... Jiayi, did I not just sense the aura of Taiyi? And didn’t the Unfeeling Dao Star in the sky shine brighter and brighter?"
The Daoist Sect Master turned her head, her gaze piercing through the silk gauze to land on Jiang Jiayi. Her eyes flashed like lightning.
Jiang Jiayi said simply, "It was indeed Taiyi, a relic left behind by the Chang’an Sect Master. The Miao Yu Palace Master acted against the heavens, so I brought her back to Celestial Mountain to escape the Blood Thunder. The Chang’an Sect Master’s relic held off the Blood Thunder for her for a few days."
The Innate Sword Body had no intention of revealing Lu Changyuan’s existence to the Daoist Sect Master.
"So that’s how it is. And here I thought my good-for-nothing master had come back to life. Oh well. So what does this Miao Yu Palace Master, Xia Yutang, have to do with my heartless master?"
Jiang Jiayi had been expecting this question, and a smile touched her lips.
"She was a former paramour of the Chang’an Sect Master. Which means you should address the Miao Yu Palace Master as... Mistress."
Celestial Mountain suddenly trembled. Snow drifted down from the peak, and the blue Glazed longsword began to vibrate, as if ready to leap from its scabbard at any moment.