Chapter 38: Clear Sky Thirteen Sword Fury
Dusk had arrived, and in the courtyard Li Qingqiu sat at the table, shelling peanuts and eating them the peanuts having been grown by the Clear Sky Sect itself and, after being roasted, giving off a fragrant aroma.
Xu Ning sat opposite him, sullen.
Li Qingqiu smiled inwardly; the girl had said she could never surpass him, yet she became gloomy after losing.
Human hearts, unpredictable, unpredictable.
Cheng Canghai came to sit beside Li Qingqiu, and he spoke in a low voice：“Sect Master, didn’t you ask everyone to brainstorm ways to make money？How about I steal valuables from those high officials and nobles？”
Li Qingqiu gave him a look and replied irritably：“Do you think so？Wouldn’t that just create more trouble？I meant the righteous path—relying on our own effort to produce wealth.”
Hearing this, Cheng Canghai was very vexed, and said：“If creating could make one rich, then farmers would long ago be the wealthiest people.”
“Indeed, you’re worse than a farmer.”
Cheng Canghai was angered and got up to leave.
Li Qingqiu paid it no mind; the Clear Sky Sect did not necessarily have to be a righteous sect in the mundane sense, but it also could not sink to shameful deeds unfit for the public eye.
He hoped the Clear Sky Sect would become a Dao sect for cultivation, not controlled by the mundane world, yet revered by the people, acting justly in daily life and able to turn the tide when heaven and earth were in peril.
Of course, that goal was still far off; first the Clear Sky Sect had to survive.
After the time it took for one incense stick to burn, the disciples began serving dishes, and at that time Qin Ye returned, bringing with him someone else—Jiang Kuotian of White Emperor Manor.
Li Qingqiu and Xu Ning had passed by the two of them when they went up the mountain; seeing Jiang Kuotian arrive, Li Qingqiu was not surprised, though he put on an outward air of delight, rising to say：“Senior Uncle Jiang, what brings you here？Come, let us have a chat.”
Xu Ning and the surrounding disciples turned their heads to look, their gazes full of curiosity—this person was the sect master’s senior uncle？
Jiang Kuotian’s expression was a little complicated, not as bold as the last time he had come, and even somewhat constrained.
He followed Qin Ye to the table, forcing a smile, and said：“Junior Disciple Li, two years without seeing you, the Clear Sky Sect has changed so much—has your sect ancestor returned？”
Li Qingqiu had not yet answered when Xu Ning could not help but speak：“What do you mean？Couldn’t it be my master’s credit？”
The other disciples’ looks toward Jiang Kuotian also turned displeased; it was not that they bore grudges against Clear Sky Immortal, but they were young and often belittled by outsiders, and Li Qingqiu, as sect master, was also young—Jiang Kuotian’s words were clearly looking down on Li Qingqiu; could they tolerate that？
Although Li Qingqiu did not personally teach the disciples martial arts, he treated them kindly and spoke wittily in daily life, much loved by the disciples; how could they allow an outsider to belittle the sect master they respected？
This was not only a slight against the sect master, but a slight against them all！
The sect master had said that for the Clear Sky Sect to be where it was today, every disciple had contributed！
Jiang Kuotian was stung by Xu Ning’s retort and felt a little embarrassed, but he did not argue with the girl; he asked in surprise：“Clear Sky Immortal hasn’t returned？”
“Hmm, I have not seen that sect ancestor since I grew up, and my master has not returned either；the Clear Sky Sect’s present was our sect-wide effort,” Li Qingqiu replied；he was not angry—on the contrary, Jiang Kuotian’s attitude proved how successful the Clear Sky Sect’s construction had been, which gave him a sense of accomplishment.
He did not put Jiang Kuotian to shame and warmly invited him to sit, beginning to exchange pleasantries.
Qin Ye did not stay; he placed the wooden pole against the wall and then began chopping firewood—he was always like that, taciturn and quietly doing work.
After speaking a few words with Li Qingqiu, Jiang Kuotian finally relaxed somewhat; being frank by nature, he did not hide the earlier events and sighed：“That boy called Qin Ye is truly formidable；I overestimated myself and sparred with him using only one hand, yet I was defeated；I heard he is your disciple—how did you train him？”
Although Jiang Kuotian came from White Emperor Manor, he was not a top-tier expert; for him to be defeated using only one hand by Qin Ye, who had practiced the Ten Directions Demon-Subduing Staff Technique through hard cultivation, Li Qingqiu was not too surprised.
If it were a fight to the death, Qin Ye certainly would not be Jiang Kuotian’s match.
The Ten Directions Demon-Subduing Staff Technique was a staff art designed for slaughter, coupled with a unique heart-method that could use qi force with extremely strong lethality.
Li Qingqiu shook his head：“I do not have that skill；some time ago a supreme expert stayed on the mountain for a while and enlightened him.”
“A supreme expert？Who？”
Jiang Kuotian widened his eyes and asked；a supreme expert was immensely powerful, the gap between such a one and a top-tier expert was like an abyss; he relaxed instantly.
The jianghu was full of such legends of chance encounters—receiving instruction from a supreme expert and suddenly improving by leaps and bounds.
“That elder would not say, and it was not appropriate for us to pry,” Li Qingqiu answered naturally, without a trace of deceit on his face.
Jiang Kuotian clicked his tongue in wonder, remarking that Qin Ye’s fortune was deep and that he would surely achieve great things.
He went on to ask about Jiang Zhaoxia; curious about how Jiang Zhaoxia had made such a name for himself, for when Jiang Kuotian had come to the Clear Sky Sect two years before he had sensed Jiang Zhaoxia’s arrogance, but he had not expected him to truly have the ability.
“Third Junior Brother was in seclusion cultivating and had not been seen for several days；by the way, Senior Uncle Jiang, what brought you to visit us？” Li Qingqiu explained, then asked.
His impression of Jiang Kuotian was good—after all, Jiang Kuotian had once given him a magical implement.
Though he had reached the fourth layer of the Nourishing Vital Energy Realm, he still could not break that implement’s seal, showing it was no ordinary thing—a definite treasure.
Jiang Kuotian replied：“Recently there was a military rebellion in Guzhou；the prefecture and its counties’ armies could not suppress the rebels and had been losing county towns；White Emperor Manor stood within the prefecture and naturally had to aid it；I was dispatched to a nearby county to serve in the military and teach them martial arts；not hearing of Jiang Zhaoxia’s achievements, I came up to see you—seeing you all doing well, I am completely at ease.”
Li Qingqiu was curious about this rebellion and asked more；Jiang Kuotian did not hide anything.
In fact it was not only Guzhou in upheaval; three other prefectures were also in turmoil—these four prefectures all suffered famine, and bandits were stirring up the populace, recruiting refugees as soldiers and attacking cities to seize territory；once inside they behaved wantonly, smashing, looting, killing—committing every evil, even defiling women in the streets. Two years had passed and this disaster had not been curbed but had grown worse.
Now the court had issued bounties across the land, calling on jianghu heroes to join in eradicating the bandits with generous rewards.
“Big Senior Brother, why don’t we also go and hunt bandits！” Zhang Yuchun suddenly scooted beside Li Qingqiu, excited.
Before Li Qingqiu could refuse, Jiang Kuotian slapped the table：“No—you’re still young；focus on your cultivation, this world will not fall into chaos；the Sage already knows of these matters and will have the rebellions pacified within at most half a year！”
The “Sage” was the term officials and commoners used to refer to the emperor.
Li Qingqiu also did not want his disciples to meddle; they were too young, and participating in such turmoil might not be good for their minds, and they would have to deal with the authorities.
The Clear Sky Sect might in the future descend in chaotic times to save the people, but not at this moment.
“Half a year？So soon？” Zhang Yuchun asked in astonishment.
Jiang Kuotian snorted：“Of course；previously there were treacherous ministers confusing the Sage’s sight, but they have been executed；our Great Li Dynasty has only reigned thirty years, and a true era of peace has not yet arrived；endure a few more years and you will enjoy prosperity.”
Li Qingqiu had not expected Jiang Kuotian to be so devout in his belief in the current emperor.
Qin Ye, who was chopping wood, could not help but turn his head to look at Jiang Kuotian, his eyes full of anger；he regretted having held back earlier and not knocking some sense into Jiang Kuotian.
The dishes were served one after another, and Li Qingqiu invited Jiang Kuotian to eat and to tell them about jianghu affairs；compared to court affairs, the disciples were more curious about the jianghu’s tumult.
Jiang Kuotian began to speak one by one, growing more excited as he talked.
He even mentioned the martial champion Li Yang.
It was said that when Li Yang challenged the Heavenly Blade Sect, he had spoken insolently and been severely injured by the Heavenly Blade Sect；as a result the Heavenly Blade Sect had incurred the wrath of the Li Family of Linchuan, and the Heavenly Blade Sect was now suffering difficulties and having a hard time.
“Defeated by Jiang Zhaoxia and disgraced, and oppressed by the Li Family of Linchuan, the Heavenly Blade Sect may not be able to retain its position among the Seven Great Sects,” Jiang Kuotian said with schadenfreude.
This news excited the disciples, but because Li Qingqiu had warned them in advance, they did not reveal the feud between Jiang Zhaoxia and the Heavenly Blade Sect.
Jiang Kuotian’s arrival enlivened the Clear Sky Sect, and the next day when he met Yang Jueding he was even more surprised；the two had a sense of belated kinship, and Jiang Kuotian stayed two more days.
Five days later Jiang Kuotian descended the mountain.
Because of the news Jiang Kuotian brought, the Clear Sky Sect disciples cherished their time training on the mountain all the more.
Days turned like the pages of a book.
Autumn passed into winter, and snow began to fall.
One day Jiang Zhaoxia broke through to the fourth layer of the Nourishing Vital Energy Realm, and Li Qingqiu, far down the mountainside, felt a sword intent；he followed that sword intent and found Jiang Zhaoxia.
Jiang Zhaoxia stood upon a lake, the water beneath his feet not frozen yet continuously rippling.
Sword intent was a wondrous thing, like momentum yet possessing a palpable force；Li Qingqiu, who had the Fate Trait of a born sword-obsessed, felt sword intent for the first time and could immediately recognize it as such.
Jiang Zhaoxia’s sword intent was strong, making Li Qingqiu feel as if Jiang Zhaoxia himself were a treasured sword, all sharp edge and gleam.
“I usually divided my attention cultivating the Rejuvenating Ghostly Immortal Needle；even if I share the same Fate Trait as Third Junior Brother, in sword Dao attainment I’m still inferior to him,” Li Qingqiu stood at the lakeside staring at Jiang Zhaoxia, thinking this, his face full of gratification.
Jiang Zhaoxia’s breakthrough was not only in cultivation but in his sword Dao.
Without a master’s instruction, his sword intent could form on its own—his comprehension in the sword Dao was truly a gift of heaven.
Snow floated down like flowers, melting into wisps of white smoke before landing on Jiang Zhaoxia; at this moment he appeared otherworldly, as if about to transform into an immortal.
Suddenly.
Jiang Zhaoxia raised his hand and used his finger as a sword, thrusting toward Li Qingqiu, sword qi burst from his fingertip like lightning.
Li Qingqiu reacted swiftly; his right hand threw out a silver needle, which flew and struck the sword qi in midair；the silver needle was cut in two, and the sword qi dispersed.
Jiang Zhaoxia squinted and said：“Senior Brother, I cannot tell whether your cultivation is stronger, or whether your needle technique is stronger than my sword qi.”
Li Qingqiu retorted irritably：“If I had reacted slowly, I would have died just now beneath your sword qi.”
“Impossible, my sword qi has reached the state of refinement, I can control its release and retraction；even if it came to kill before your face, I could make it stop immediately,” Jiang Zhaoxia’s tone carried a trace of pride.
Li Qingqiu’s mouth curved upward and he asked：“So, do you still seek revenge now？”
Jiang Zhaoxia looked steadily at him; after a long while he spoke：“Among the Heavenly Blade Sect experts who attacked me there was a blade cohort—highly skilled, coordinated, and they caused me much hardship；I intend to select thirteen disciples within the sect and personally teach them the sword Dao,so that in the future I will lead them to exterminate every enemy that threatens the Clear Sky Sect.”
‘I have already thought of the name；it shall be called “Clear Sky Thirteen Sword Fiends.”’