The Qingcheng Sect blazed with light throughout the night, illuminated by the torches around its training grounds and filled with the sounds of Daoists practicing with their new swords.
The disciples swung their blades in a state of total absorption, oblivious to fatigue.
No one was more excited than Qingcheng’s first-generation disciples.
Training with chipped swords had hardly been enjoyable, but that was no longer the case.
They never wanted to let go of the swords that fit so perfectly in their hands.
The elders of the Un generation watched the scene with satisfaction.
“Ha ha ha. How many years has it been since the sect’s main mountain was this lively?”
“Years? This is the first time I have ever seen it.”
“What are you talking about? There was a time when they trained that diligently.”
“They may have trained hard before, but they have never enjoyed it this much.”
Ja Un nodded at Jeok Un’s words.
“You are right. Now that I think about it, this is the first time I have seen the children train with such joy on their faces.”
“They are enjoying their training, so their skills will surely improve by leaps and bounds. This is all thanks to the Perfected Lord of Supreme Purity watching over us.”
“Nonsense! The Perfected Lord may have watched over us, but is this not chiefly thanks to Merchant Master Jeok?”
“That is true as well. By the way, where is Merchant Master Jeok?”
“He is meeting privately with the Sect Master.”
“Impressive. At his age, he is already someone who can meet privately with the head of an entire sect.”
“He forged weapons like these. How could he possibly be an ordinary man?”
Just then, Seon Un, who had been standing quietly beside them, suddenly rushed away.
“Where are you going?”
“Enough! I cannot stand it any longer. I am going to train too!”
At Seon Un’s declaration, Myeong Un also ran off.
“I cannot resist either.”
Once the two of them had bolted away, Ja Un and Jeok Un exchanged grins and moved almost simultaneously.
They were just as eager to test their new swords.
They had merely been restraining themselves for the sake of appearances.
*****
The Hall of No-Mind at the Qingcheng Sect.
Jeok Wigang sat there, savoring the tea that Baek Un had personally brewed for him.
“Thank you. Because of you, the Qingcheng Sect can finally breathe again.”
“It was only possible because of the Chief Escort’s connection to this place.”
“Ha ha ha. Indeed. The bonds of fate truly are remarkable things.”
“But how did the Qingcheng Sect’s finances fall into such dire straits?”
Baek Un groaned before answering.
“Ugh. It is all because I lack virtue.”
“What?”
“The Perfected Lord of Supreme Purity became angry because I was unworthy. He stirred the Azure Dragon Vein to warn me.”
“What is the Azure Dragon Vein?”
“One of the Four Great Energy Veins beneath heaven has flowed under this mountain since ancient times. We call it the Azure Dragon Vein. The Qingcheng Sect has always used its energy as the foundation for cultivating martial arts and inner qi.”
“Has the Azure Dragon Vein ever convulsed before?”
Baek Un’s expression grew stricken at Jeok Wigang’s question.
“No. Never. It happened for the first time under me.”
That was why it weighed so heavily on him.
Something that had never happened before had occurred during his tenure as Sect Master.
He blamed it entirely on his own lack of virtue.
Jeok Wigang, however, sensed that something was wrong.
When Jeok Wigang repeatedly tilted his head, Baek Un asked, “Can you feel it as well? The instability in the Azure Dragon Vein’s energy?”
“Yes. Something about it feels unnatural.”
“Unnatural?”
“Yes. The energy is being violently distorted at one particular point.”
“At a single point?”
“I think we should go there and take a look.”
“It is already late tonight. Let us go together tomorrow.”
*****
The next day.
As soon as dawn broke, Baek Un accompanied Jeok Wigang toward the place where the energy had supposedly been distorted.
As he followed Jeok Wigang, Baek Un could not help feeling perplexed.
How had Jeok Wigang located the distortion?
Had he not visited Mount Qingcheng for the first time only yesterday?
Even Baek Un, who had sensed the mountain’s energy for many years, could tell only that the Azure Dragon Vein had fallen into disorder.
Yet Jeok Wigang had identified the exact point where the distortion originated.
“This is it.”
When they reached the location, they found a massive, vicious-looking stake driven into the earth.
“Wh-what is that?”
It was a pillar of black iron, too thick for two hands to encircle.
Azure energy continually seeped like blood from the gaps around the embedded stake before dispersing into the air.
Every living thing around it had withered and dried to death, leaving behind a horrifying landscape utterly devoid of vitality.
The Azure Dragon Vein thrashed wildly, as though in agony.
“Someone drove this stake into the ground to sever the Azure Dragon Vein by force. Judging by its condition, it has not been here long.”
“The Azure Dragon Vein only began convulsing recently.”
“Then the upheaval must have occurred while someone was driving in the stake.”
Baek Un’s expression turned frightening.
Who would dare commit such an atrocity against the sacred Azure Dragon Vein?
Enraged, Baek Un reached out to pull the stake free.
A powerful surge of energy erupted and hurled him backward.
“Hngh!”
“Be careful. The enraged energy of the Azure Dragon Vein is attacking everything that approaches.”
“The Azure Dragon Vein itself is preventing anyone from approaching? Th-then how are we supposed to pull that thing out?”
“I can pull it out.”
“Wh-what are you saying? The energy of the Azure Dragon Vein is nature itself. It is not something you can withstand.”
“I am not so sure about that. Let me try.”
“It is dangerous!”
Baek Un was too late to stop him.
Jeok Wigang was already reaching for the stake.
Baek Un swiftly moved behind him, ready to catch Jeok Wigang when he was thrown backward.
“What?”
Then something astonishing happened.
Jeok Wigang was not pushed away, even after extending his hand toward the stake.
The energy had not disappeared.
In fact, it was surging even more violently than when Baek Un had approached.
CLACK—
Jeok Wigang gripped the stake and applied a little strength.
CRRK— CRACK—
It came free in an instant.
RRRRUMBLE—
The moment the stake was removed, the earth began to shake.
Azure qi erupted from the hole it had left behind, surging upward like a volcanic eruption.
Unless the opening was sealed, all the energy would escape and the Azure Dragon Vein would rapidly decay.
If that happened, Mount Qingcheng would become a mountain of death.
Jeok Wigang hurriedly recited a mantra.
“Heavenly qi, flow. Earthly qi, gather. Five elements, restore life. All things, return to order.”
The energy of the five elements flowed from his fingertips and formed a ring.
When he fitted the ring over the opening, a clear beam of light descended from the heavens, while blue-green waves of energy surged from beneath the earth.
The two forces collided.
The parched earth became moist, and the withered plants surrounding it regained their green color and began sprouting anew.
At the same time, the gaping hole was sealed so perfectly that it seemed never to have existed.
The violently thrashing energy stabilized in an instant, and tranquility returned to the area.
“Whew.”
Jeok Wigang steadied his breathing, rose to his feet, and looked at Baek Un.
Baek Un had been staring at him in shock.
He abruptly offered a martial salute and bowed deeply.
“Th-this unworthy disciple greets the P-Perfected Lord of Supreme Purity!”
The shock must have made him see things.
“What are you doing? It is me, Jeok Wigang.”
“A-are you truly not the Perfected Lord of Supreme Purity?”
“I am not.”
“Th-then what was it that I just witnessed?”
“I restored everything with sorcery.”
“Sorcery?”
“Yes. You cultivate the Dao, so surely you are familiar with it.”
“I am familiar with sorcery, but... I have never heard of or witnessed anything this extraordinary.”
“I modified it a little.”
That only made the situation more absurd.
He had modified it “a little,” and the result was a spectacle of this magnitude?
Even more astonishing was how he had pulled out the stake while effortlessly withstanding the tremendous power leaking from the Azure Dragon Vein.
Baek Un had been unable to endure it and was thrown away, yet Jeok Wigang had simply walked forward as though nothing were happening.
Did that not mean Jeok Wigang was stronger than him?
He was a master craftsman who had forged one extraordinary sword after another. Despite his youth, he led an entire merchant company. He possessed inconceivable divine strength and equally inconceivable sorcery.
Who could possibly believe such a person was human?
Moreover, he had appeared like a savior when the Qingcheng Sect was suffering most and resolved its problems.
If he was not the Perfected Lord of Supreme Purity, then who could be?
Baek Un asked no further questions.
It was enough for him to believe it in his heart.
“Thank you. Because of you, Mount Qingcheng has been saved. How could we ever repay this grace?”
“This is not over yet.”
“What do you mean?”
“We still need to find the man who drove in that stake.”
“Do you believe the culprit is still here?”
“Of course. Would he not want to witness Mount Qingcheng withering with his own eyes?”
“I see. Then you believe he will return here?”
“The distorted energy has been restored. He will sense that something has changed and come running.”
Jeok Wigang had barely finished speaking when Baek Un turned sharply and stared in one direction with a fearsome expression.
“Never in my life have I felt energy so sinister and saturated with evil qi. That man must be the culprit.”
“I believe so too.”
“Remain here. I will deal with him myself.”
Should I stop him?
No.
He will only understand the danger once he experiences it firsthand.
Jeok Wigang examined the energy of the approaching figure.
White Horse Heaven.
The figure soon appeared in the distance.
The man had a gaunt frame and eyes as transparent as glass.
Black energy churned inside those clear eyes, writhing violently with fury.
Layers of rotting ocher talismans had been pasted over his filthy Daoist robes like armor, flapping wildly in the wind.
“Who are you? Who dares interfere with my work?”
He charged toward them, shouting in a voice sinister enough to chill anyone who heard it.
Baek Un stepped into his path.
SHIIING—
He drew the sword Jeok Wigang had given him and leveled it at the newcomer.
“Were you the one who drove that stake into the Azure Dragon Vein?”
“Ke ke ke. So you are a Daoist from the Qingcheng Sect! You did well to discover it!”
“So it was you!”
Furious that the enemy had admitted it so readily, Baek Un charged.
“I will not let you escape!”
A powerful tide of azure energy surged around Baek Un’s sword.
It was the Azure Dragon Primordial Unity Sword, a technique said to be reserved for the Qingcheng Sect Master and the designated successor.
“Water Links Ten Thousand Currents!”
Baek Un’s sword force spread outward like rolling waves.
The enemy stopped, laughed with delight, and reached toward the ground.
“Ke ke ke. Let us see what a Qingcheng Daoist can do.”
GRRRRIND—
Something burst from the earth and intercepted Baek Un’s sword.
CLANG!
When Baek Un saw what had blocked his blade, he recoiled in horror.
“Wh-what is that? A corpse?”
A skeleton completely stripped of flesh stood before him.
CLATTER— CLATTER—
It moved with the dry rattle of bones striking against one another.
“You fiend! So you practice necromancy, an art forbidden throughout the martial world! For the sake of the martial world’s peace, I will destroy you here!”
“Ke ke ke. Try it if you can. Today, hell itself will cover the skies of Qingcheng.”
“Do you think I will allow that? Azure Dragon Soul Quake!”
Sword light erupted.
An azure dragon soared into the sky and coiled around the skeletons.
KWA-KWA-KWAAANG—
Shattered fragments of bone scattered in every direction.
The enemy merely smiled as though it were nothing and snapped his fingers.
THOOM!
A black object dropped in front of the charging Baek Un.
Upon closer inspection, it was a coffin.
CREEEAK—
The lid opened, and something dressed in official robes emerged from within.
It was—
“A reanimated corpse!”