Chapter Ninety-Nine: Sword Qi Extends Far
Page (1/3)
Using the academy’s name as a pretext to conduct healing, He Chang’an and Li Yishan quickly reached an agreement and immediately set things in motion.
Since this matter concerned He Chang’an’s life, no one except Zheng Hongxiu was privy to the details.
Under Zheng Hongxiu’s direct command, in less than a day and a night, a moderately sized array of noble righteous energy was arranged. Li Yishan, Ma Dai, and Shen Yan took charge and named it the “Heaven-Earth-Human Three Talents Array of Noble Righteous Energy.”
The name was quite long, sounding formidable, leaving the academy scholars utterly baffled, unsure of what the three gentlemen intended.
Li Yishan offered no explanation; instead, he instructed over two hundred scholars to sit at their respective “array eyes” positions—reading, writing, or chatting idly.
...
The one who set up this grand array was Zhang Xiaoyan, of illustrious lineage, surprisingly descended from the legendary Zhang Celestial Master of Longhu Mountain.
He Chang’an had heard of the famed Zhang Celestial Master of Longhu Mountain, vaguely recalling that their lineage belonged to terrestrial immortals who rarely mingled in the mortal world, which left him feeling indifferent.
What puzzled him more was why this celestial master Zhang Xiaoyan—her skin as fair as snow, brows gracefully arched, phoenix eyes bright and alluring, delicate as silk—kept fixating on him with an expression that was half-smile, half-shy, as if wanting to say something but held back.
Because of this, He Chang’an fetched a bronze mirror to repeatedly check his attire, appearance, and hairstyle, finding nothing amiss.
It wasn’t until he accidentally noticed Zhang Xiaoyan’s slender throat beneath her floral dress and graceful fingers that his heart tightened.
Fortunately, with Zheng Hongxiu personally overseeing, and Li Yishan and other scholars present, Zhang Xiaoyan only occasionally winked or covered a smile, teasing lightly before returning to her array work, which eased He Chang’an’s worries somewhat.
Zhang Xiaoyan was truly from a prestigious family; with a few deft movements, she arranged dozens of colorful array flags as if she had it all planned in advance.
She commanded soldiers to bring three hundred eighty-six giant stones, stacking them in six overlapping layers of varying lengths; at last, He Chang’an saw clearly—it was a primordial Bagua array.
Though unfamiliar with array formations, He Chang’an could feel that with just a few adjustments by Zhang Xiaoyan, the surrounding spiritual energy slowly gathered, and standing within the array was like basking in a gentle spring breeze.
Yet with another slight change, the atmosphere turned eerie and chilling, as if descending into an ice cellar.
Truly miraculous and unfathomable, He Chang’an was both dazzled and refreshed. Were it not for Zhang Xiaoyan occasionally shooting him a sharp sideways glance, he might have been tempted to learn the secrets of array techniques.
Of course, he reminded himself to focus on the task at hand.
After completing the array’s setup, all soldiers and bystanders were dismissed, leaving only Zheng Hongxiu, He Chang’an, Li Yishan, and Zhang Xiaoyan.
Only then did the “beauty” from the Longhu Mountain Celestial Master’s Mansion smile softly and say:
“This Inverted Yin-Yang Array can conceal all energy patterns here. Even a Ghost King realm cultivator won’t be able to discern its secrets.”
She then turned to He Chang’an with a half-smile and asked teasingly, “He Chang’an, would you like to invite this humble servant for a drink?”
With that, she performed a deep bow, causing He Chang’an’s face to turn green.
He quietly stepped half a pace closer to Zheng Hongxiu, standing obediently without a word.
Page (2/3)
Zheng Hongxiu and Li Yishan barely contained their laughter, exchanging mischievous glances that made it clear they would not come to He Chang’an’s aid.
“Will you invite me for a drink? I’ve been thinking about you so much...” Zhang Xiaoyan’s seductive eyes and gentle breath made He Chang’an’s heart race wildly, prompting him to inch even closer to Zheng Hongxiu.
“All right, all right, stop teasing him,” Zheng Hongxiu said through gritted teeth, “You, Zhang Xiaoyan, you flirtatious vixen, better off seducing a tasteless man like Li Yishan…”
Li Yishan was grinning broadly at He Chang’an’s predicament until Zheng Hongxiu’s words suddenly made his face drop.
“By the way, He Chang’an, how long does it take to heal a soldier?” Zheng Hongxiu asked seriously.
“If it’s quick, about twenty or thirty breaths; some soul imprints require the time it takes to drink a cup of tea,” He Chang’an replied promptly.
Zheng Hongxiu nodded slightly and waved her hand, “Then activate the array immediately—begin at once!”
...
In fact, the array Zhang Xiaoyan had set up was far more powerful than expected.
The three hundred eighty-six giant stones corresponded to three hundred eighty-six array eyes, each inscribed with profound runes and equipped with slots for spiritual stones.
Seeing spiritual stones for the first time, He Chang’an’s eyes lit up eagerly, tempted to pick one up for careful study and identification.
He had long harbored a bold idea: if only he possessed a vein of spiritual stones...
These were truly celestial treasures, incomparable to worldly treasures such as gold and silver—one from the heavens, the other from the earth, utterly incomparable.
The moment the array was activated, the three hundred eighty-six array eyes surged with spiritual energy fluctuations, rapidly forming a cyclical circulation route that converged at He Chang’an’s position.
After feeling the flow for a while, He Chang’an’s expression changed slightly.
This array was indeed formidable.
As a descendant of the Longhu Mountain Celestial Master’s line, within just a day and a night, she had crafted an array combining the gathering, confinement, refinement, and concealment of spiritual energy and heavenly secrets!
Such a grand feat stirred a warm feeling in He Chang’an’s heart, who was still a novice in cultivation.
Within this array, he did not need to personally refine the energy; when two or three hundred soldiers entered, he only needed to refine from the center.
Moreover, considering He Chang’an was purely a martial man, worried about his spiritual energy supply, the design allowed a continuous influx of spiritual energy...
...
At last, he could once again “freeload” the benefits.
He sat cross-legged in the array, quietly releasing the little black rod to feed and refine independently, as the endless yin and ghostly energy and spiritual energy excited it beyond measure, eager to test itself.
He Chang’an comforted it gently with his mind, and it gradually calmed.
He took out a book from his bosom to study and contemplate—“Sword Qi Far,” a volume passed to him by the elder scholar via Ajiu.
Page (3/3)
He Chang’an’s expression gradually grew strange.
This “Sword Qi Far” was not a Taoist secret manual but rather the story of a fallen scholar who neither succeeded in letters nor martial arts, squandered his family fortune, and wandered the world suffering greatly, determined to create a sword technique to sever all injustice.
The scholar had secluded himself in a great canyon called Sword Gate, poring over books, observing the stars, studying the earth, tossing and turning day and night.
Thirty years passed in the blink of an eye.
The scholar, now middle-aged, poor and ill, lay bedridden in a thatched hut, accompanied only by a gray ape, near death.
One day, the ape unexpectedly found an iron sword and joyfully presented it to the scholar.
Struggling to rise, the scholar took the sword and stepped outside.
It was just before dawn; the eastern sky lightened, and the world was silent save for one man and his sword standing at the canyon’s bottom.
Inspired suddenly, the scholar swung his sword casually.
That stroke was effortless and elegant, as if a leisurely stroll, wielded not for practice but to dispel a heart full of injustice.
The scholar laughed heartily and rode away with his sword.
Outside Sword Gate, a true martial primordial turtle, slumbering countless years, was silently cleaved in two by that casual stroke.
Its massive body split into two peaks within the Tang realm, one named True Martial Mountain, the other Wudang Mountain.
The two peaks faced each other, ever enchanting to behold, weathering wind and rain for thousands of years.
One day, passing Sword Gate on his flying sword, the scholar recalled those days and, on impulse, landed at his old retreat.
He was stunned to discover that his casual stroke had slain an ancient true martial primordial turtle.
Filled with regret, he stood silently for a long time, then inscribed a sword scripture called “Sword Qi Near” upon a towering stone cliff on True Martial Mountain.
Later, at the foot of Wudang Mountain, after deep contemplation, he inscribed another scripture, “Sword Qi Far.”
Near and far, facing each other for millennia, as if the sword qi itself was both close and distant, eternally captivating...
...
“So, the so-called Sword Qi Near and Sword Qi Far actually share the same origin...”
He Chang’an buried himself in the book, studying “Sword Qi Far,” eating and sleeping, then eating again, unaware that three months had passed as the little black rod quietly refined the yin and ghostly energy within the array.
During this time, fierce battles raged outside Great Scattered Pass, with heavy casualties on both the human and ghost armies.
Both sides entered a brief phase of stalemate and confrontation.