Chapter 30

Below the inn, the previously leisurely flow of people suddenly descended into chaos. Mortals scrambled away in terror, while the more courageous cultivators drew their swords, heading out as if to investigate the disturbance.

Xie Zhefeng remained in the room, motionless.

On the high-rise gallery, the surrounding turmoil seemed to be walled off. In the long corridor, only An Wuxue and Qin Wei stood facing each other.

Qin Wei stared fixedly at the person who had pulled him aside, forgetting even to blink. His expression was vacant for a moment, then his lips trembled as he opened his mouth, his gaze filled with doubt.

Another boom echoed! The Zhaoshui Sword shuddered once more.

Below, Song Buwang hurried into the inn. Moving against the current of the crowd, he tapped his toes on the ground and vaulted into the air, landing beside the gallery. "Master—"

Seeing An Wuxue and Qin Wei standing face-to-face, motionless, he slammed on the brakes.

Qin Wei did not even glance at his disciple; his gaze remained fixed on An Wuxue from start to finish.

He finally spoke, his voice trembling: "...What do you mean by this?"

An Wuxue gripped him tightly. Now that he had spoken, there was no turning back in front of Qin Wei. The clamor of the world could not reach his ears; his heart was plunged into silence.

He took a deep breath and said, word by word, "Xie Zhefeng will not wake up for a while. Qin Wei, the life of Zhaoshui rests on your decision. Believe in me one more time—just this once."

Song Buwang, standing behind them, could not make sense of their conversation and stepped forward, clutching his sword. "Master, the disturbance of the Zhaoshui Sword—is it related to the miasma that vanished from the Cloud Sword Sect? Should we..."

Qin Wei raised a hand, cutting Song Buwang off.

He rasped, "Xie Chuhan... does Xie Zhefeng know?"

An Wuxue lowered his eyes. "He does not."

"You..." Qin Wei suddenly shook off An Wuxue's grip. "You truly have a talent for this."

An Wuxue lost his footing, stumbling back against the gallery railing. He offered no explanation.

Qin Wei’s surprise began to recede, replaced by a complex expression. His eyes seemed bloodshot, the capillaries faintly visible, and his voice grew hoarser. "Fine, truly fine. How could you... how is it possible...? Since you are still alive, are you not afraid that I might kill you?"

He paused, tilted his head slightly, and finally let out a breath, instantly suppressing the raging waves within him. He said solemnly, "What do you mean by a Great Demon being suppressed beneath the Zhaoshui Sword? Why have I never known of this?"

"If this is a lie, can you not go to the Zhaoshui Sword Array and see for yourself to expose me?" An Wuxue turned his face away, refusing to look at him, and whispered, "The suppressed Great Demon has reached the half-step Ascension realm. Back then, none of us had ascended; no one could kill a half-step Ascension demon, so we could only seal it here."

"The miasma produced by the destruction of the Cloud Sword Sect cannot shake the Zhaoshui Sword, but it is enough to damage the array. If that miasma is funneled into the formation, the suppressed demon can absorb it and break out from within."

"Time is short. If you are willing to trust me, we can discuss all past grievances after this is over."

An Wuxue looked down at the panicked crowds below. "Shui Ming... would likely not want Zhaoshui to suffer either."

"You dare mention Shui Ming to me?"

An Wuxue remained silent.

Qin Wei gave him one last look, his expression complicated. Finally, swallowing the thousand words he wished to say, he turned and walked away quickly. As he passed Song Buwang, he said, "Something terrible is about to happen to the Zhaoshui Sword Array. Take all the disciples, seal off the four sides of the array, and detain anyone suspicious who approaches. The rest, follow me."

"Yes."

Qin Wei paused, glancing back at An Wuxue, who still stood where he had been left, his back turned to him.

"Bring him."

An Wuxue appeared to be nothing more than a cultivator in the Inedia stage. Song Buwang was puzzled, but Qin Wei had already flown off. He had no choice but to quickly approach An Wuxue.

"This..."

"Su Xue."

"Young Master Su, please follow me."

The giant Zhaoshui Sword trembled again. This time, a wave of spiritual power surged outward from the center of Zhaoshui City. In the main hall, tea tables and chairs toppled, and cups shattered.

Outside the inn, the long street that had been swarming with people was now devoid of mortals. The disciples of Luoyue Peak stood in a line, holding their swords and bowing in salute.

Qin Wei simply waved a hand to lift them up, then took to his sword, heading straight for the Zhaoshui Sword Array.

An Wuxue followed Song Buwang to the disciples. Gale winds swept through the streets, leaving debris scattered everywhere. Song Buwang issued orders as Qin Wei had directed, his words and actions meticulous and steady—the very picture of a great sect’s disciple.

Zhaoshui City had been struck by a sudden disaster, and with no Tribulation-stage expert to hold the fort, it had descended into instant chaos. Amidst the surging spiritual power and the chilling winds, the remaining Luoyue disciples bowed in obedience to Song Buwang without a word of dissent.

It was no wonder the female disciple on Frost Sea had told him that Senior Brother Song was the most promising candidate of this generation to become the Sect Leader.

It was a pity he had stability but lacked a touch of boldness; he still required tempering. No wonder Xie Zhefeng had not granted him the position of Sect Leader.

This matter had nothing to do with him; he was truly wronged.

In front of the inn, the Luoyue disciples dispersed, their sword lights streaking in all directions. The City Lord of Zhaoshui appeared.

"Buwang!" the City Lord said, his face etched with anxiety. "What has happened to the Zhaoshui Sword? Since Luoyue has intervened, I will naturally obey your sect's commands. Is there anything I can do?"

Song Buwang replied with a stern face, "Are there any other Tribulation-stage cultivators in the city?"

"There was a cultivator from Northern Ming, but a few hours ago, an urgent message arrived from the North, and it seems they have already started their journey back..."

He was clearly referring to Jiang Qing. An Wuxue frowned. Jiang Qing had returned to Northern Ming; before Xie Zhefeng woke up, Qin Wei was the only Tribulation-stage expert in all of Zhaoshui City.

Song Buwang said, "City Lord, do your best to keep the citizens of Zhaoshui far away from the sword array and set up barriers; do not let anyone near the Zhaoshui Sword. If the array truly fails, those of us in the Great Completion stage will be powerless to turn the tide, so we must ensure the safety of the mortals. If other cultivators are available, please have them search for suspicious individuals or demonic cultivators in the city. The Zhaoshui Sword Array has likely been tampered with by those with ill intent. This array was not easily come by; my Master and I will certainly not let Zhaoshui repeat the dangers of the past."

An Wuxue noticed the familiarity with which the two spoke. Did Song Buwang have a history with Zhaoshui City?

In the distance, the Zhaoshui Sword, which pierced the clouds, shook even more violently. The clear sky above Zhaoshui City suddenly filled with dark clouds. Even before they neared the sword, they could feel the faint, surging miasma within the array.

The disciples and the City Lord dispersed. Song Buwang turned back, swiftly formed a seal, summoned his sword, and pulled An Wuxue onto it, saying only, "Young Master Su, forgive me."

The two flew against the flow of spiritual power, drawing closer and closer to the Zhaoshui Sword. The shadow of the swaying giant sword engulfed everything in sight. Song Buwang landed steadily, holding his sword in a reverse grip, and said in surprise, "I was in a hurry to assist my Master, and the flight was quite turbulent. Young Master Su is only in the Inedia stage, yet you remained so steady."

An Wuxue nodded without a word. The harsh wind tousled his hair and whipped his robes. Standing beneath the Zhaoshui Sword, he watched the familiar array patterns trapping the chaotic spiritual energy. The miasma, emanating from somewhere unknown, seemed to be growing.

The nearby mortal dwellings had already collapsed into ruins, sand and rocks flying, but thanks to Qin Wei's swift reaction, no one remained in the vicinity.

He recalled the people and events of the past and looked at the youth standing before him, sword in hand. That familiar feeling surfaced once more.

He suddenly realized. The surname Song. Could it be... was Song Buwang the child of...

Suddenly—! A blast erupted ahead.

Qin Wei retreated through the air, and countless sword shadows fell from the Zhaoshui Sword Array. Unlike the clear, cold radiance of the past, these shadows were wreathed in wisps of black energy.

Qin Wei’s face was cold. He swung his sword, and the pressure of a peak Tribulation-stage expert poured down like a deluge, his vast spiritual power colliding with the thousands of sword shadows.

Upon impact, the miasma-tainted sword shadows were shattered. Qin Wei was pushed back, flipping through the air before landing on one knee, his sword tip driven into the ground.

With the gale winds unabated, Song Buwang, unable to attend to An Wuxue, immediately vaulted into the air to intercept the stray, splintered sword shadows.

These were clearly the sword lights of the Zhaoshui Array, yet they were now corrupted by miasma.

An Wuxue was nearly knocked over by the wind. He rushed to Qin Wei’s side, pulled out an ordinary spiritual sword, infused it with the little spiritual power he had, and drove the tip into the ground to steady himself.

"Qin Wei," he gasped, "several focal points of the array have been injected with miasma. It has already reached the heart of the formation—"

"So there truly is someone behind the chaos in Zhaoshui City... there really is miasma in the formation," Qin Wei turned to look at him, his voice low. "What is going on? We spent months laying out this array together; all the Great Demons of Zhaoshui were slain. Where did this half-step Ascension monster come from!?"

"An Wuxue."

An Wuxue froze. Since he had awakened, everyone called him Su Xue. The name An Wuxue had only ever appeared in the idle chatter of others, or simply as "that Sect Leader."

Beneath the Zhaoshui Sword, hearing Qin Wei call him by that name brought an ache he hadn't felt in a long time. He lowered his head quickly, not wanting Qin Wei to see his reddened eyes.

Qin Wei asked, "What exactly did you hide from me back then!?"

He dodged the question and asked abruptly, "Is Song Buwang the child of Shui Ming?"

"You have a sharp eye—"

"Make him leave," An Wuxue said firmly. "He must not see what is suppressed beneath the sword array. I will stay here; you are not skilled in arrays, and I can explain the mysteries of the formation to you."

"I have already trusted you once."

An Wuxue said in a deep voice, "Make him leave!!!"

In his urgency, his grip on his sword loosened. Under the vibration of the array’s spiritual power, his Inedia-stage cultivation was fragile. The wind, carrying spiritual energy, buffeted his internal organs, and he coughed up a mouthful of blood.

Qin Wei instinctively reached out to support him, but as he did, he hesitated, his expression contorting, and he pulled his hand back.

At that moment, Song Buwang had blocked the scattered sword shadows and was heading toward them.

An Wuxue gripped his sword hilt tightly, his voice raspy. "Make him leave."

Qin Wei stared at him for a long moment.

As Song Buwang approached, he gritted his teeth and said, "The miasma is thickest in the southeast. There may be trouble there. Buwang, go and guard that side."

"But Master, Young Master Su is only in the Inedia stage. Won't it be dangerous for him to stay? And the Zhaoshui Sword..."

"Go!"

"...Yes."

The youth’s figure, flying on his sword, disappeared into the southeast, and the gale winds grew even more terrifying.

Dark clouds hung heavy over the entire Zhaoshui Sword. Within the range of the array, countless sword lights flickered, and the formation shuddered!

A column of miasma surged into the sky! Within the miasma, the figure of a woman in red appeared, flickering in and out of existence.

The woman in red did not look like a living person, but rather a spirit. The soul was faint, as if treading on thin air, and her graceful figure stepped slowly out from the miasma.