Daoist Master Ling Mei nodded, asked him to have some tea first, and went to Chenghua Hall to request the text. After quite some time, he returned, cradling a Daoist scripture.
The Daoist scripture had a dark blue cover and pale yellow pages. It lay half open in his hands. Even when he walked to the tree, he did not set it on the jade table, but only said, "Zhaojing, please look."
It was not proper to make him hold it like this. Yet treasures often produced strange phenomena, and placing it on the case might crush it.
Li Ximing used his divine ability and reached out with both hands to receive it, but Daoist Master Ling Mei raised a hand and said, "Zhaojing, the Wanyu Sword Book is no ordinary thing. Let me handle it."
He smiled and said, "If one bears sword intent, the sword book is as light as brocade, and even an ordinary farmer could tuck it into his bosom and carry it away. Without cultivation in the sword, the sword book is as heavy as Mount Taishi, and even one who has achieved Purple Mansion Realm would find it hard to lift."
Li Ximing returned the smile, then nodded and let his gaze fall on the sword book. Only a six or seven thin pages had flipped. A few small words shone. At the top were the words White Pear .
The two words were snow white. Two lines down, another pair of small words surfaced, equally white, Yuxin[1].
After these two characters came tiny script that read Liyang[2] Yuxin Unified Qi Pure Yang Sword .
What followed grew even more complex, a dense array of symbols interspersed with phrases that could not be deciphered. Daoist Master Ling Mei turned the pages with his divine ability, lifting them until the final few leaves, where archaic characters in pale blue were written, Qingchi[3] .
Li Ximing took it to be a sword name. A few lines later, the writing turned to ordinary black ink, which read, Yueque[4] .
An annotation followed these two words, Sword of the Bright Moon and Profound Palace’s Autumn Radiance. Li Ximing studied it closely, felt a twinge in his heart, and asked, "What names come after this. Why are these entries not as bright as the earlier ones?"
Daoist Master Ling Mei sighed. "When a sword intent manifests in this world, it enters the sword book. The later names are the titles of sword intents. If they shine brightly, it means such sword intents still remain in the world."
The sword intents sealed by the Li Family had long been exhausted, so naturally they had dimmed. Li Ximing offered his salute, while Daoist Master Ling Mei remained silent for a long time before returning the sword book and consoling him, "It is often said that a grudge may still be avenged even after a hundred years. Yet there are times when there is no place to direct vengeance. To have all that force gathered in one's hand and no way to release it... that is the true hardship."
Li Ximing knew he was referring to Chi Wei, who had long since died, and to the Chi Family, which was now reduced to a few collateral branches clinging on. The Li Family had achieved the Purple Mansion Realm, yet there was no one left to exact vengeance upon.
He could only speak softly, "Thank you, senior, for your understanding."
In truth, Li Xuanfeng, Li Xizhi, and several others had played critical roles in the downfall of the Chi Family. Apart from the reclusive Chi Zhiyun, all the direct descendants bearing the surname Chi had perished. That alone was already a form of vengeance...
As for Chi Zhiyun, no one knows where he is in seclusion. Most likely, Si Boxiu will never permit him to emerge...
The thought flickered through Li Ximing's mind and was gone. He recalled Cheng Gao, a friend of his late uncle Li Yuanjiao, and asked, "Daoist friend, you just mentioned Cheng Gao. He had ties with my family. Where might he be today?"
Daoist Master Ling Mei paused for a moment before answering, "He is still stationed in Ganzi Prefecture of the Great Western Plains, guarding the small nation of Baili Qiang. But Longdi is now rife with devil cultivators, so he cannot move lightly."
The Wanyu Sword Gate's mountain gate was in Jiangnan, yet its jurisdiction extended all the way to the northwest of Wu State, bordering Zhao State. Li Ximing had been puzzled for years, so he seized the chance to ask indirectly.
Daoist Master Ling Mei answered readily, "This matter traces back to the True Monarch. In those years, our forebear sought the Dao and intended to establish his sect at Yuchuan Sword Peak. Yet when he consulted the True Monarch, it was denied.
"The True Monarch said, 'Dao lineages under Heaven may shift and transform, but two cannot be altered. The Sword Gate must choose its mountain in Shu, and the Shamanic Talisman Dao must stretch across the southern borderlands.' When our ancestor pressed him further, the True Monarch only said it was to let the Immortal Lord find it more pleasing to the eye..."
"More pleasing to the eye?" Li Ximing frowned in confusion. The Immortal Lord's words must have held deeper meaning.
Daoist Master Ling Mei continued, "Our ancestor thus founded the gate in Shu. In Jiangnan, we held only Raising Sword Ferry and Sword Peak. At our height, we intimidated all of Longdi and Shu. Later, when the founder fell, our strength waned, and the elder lineage in Jiangnan could not be moved. Slowly, the gate shifted to the spiritually rich Jiangnan. Hence, even today, we retain a foundation in Longdi and Shu."
Li Ximing finally understood and thought to himself, I heard that Wei’s Li belonged to the Li Family of Longdi before his achievement. If the chance arises, I must visit Longdi. If the Sword Gate has foundations there, I could inquire further then.
After a few casual words, he quickly rose to take his leave. But Ling Mei dared not let him depart Yuchuan Sword Peak empty-handed.
He produced a jade box from his sleeve that was clearly prepared earlier when retrieving the sword book, and said apologetically, "I have truly wronged you, Zhaojing. I have heard that your esteemed family possesses the Wanglin Blossom. Please accept this Horn Wood Golden Tassel. It is of great benefit to spirit plants... consider it a return gift from my Sword Gate."
Li Ximing could not decline and accepted the jade box. When he left the Sword Peak, he slipped into the great void. Only then did he open the box, finding a golden Horn Wood tassel within.
This is an item of that Daoist Master Tianjiao[5]. It is enough to serve as Purple Mansion Realm cultivation resources, and is far superior to common treasures...
He put the jade box away. At last, he had dealt with all three parties. Though the Sword Gate had been courteous in seeing him off, matters were considered settled. His heart grew much lighter.
I have properly managed the relations with the three sects and seven gates. Next... I can turn my gaze toward Jiangbei!
————
Pingya Island.
Li Jiangxia came out of the hall, his armor clinking as he walked. He strode all the way to the outskirts of the island, golden light shimmering beneath his feet. In the middle of the island stood a black horse with crimson eyes and scales on its belly, snorting loudly.
This horse had been bred from the famed Zhongsuo steeds of Mount Yue and the black-scaled horses of the great desert. An Zheyan had spent over three years capturing and breeding them, then raised this one to adulthood before sending it to the lake. Li Zhouwei had already reached the Foundation Establishment Realm by then and no longer needed it, so he gifted it to his most favored son, Li Jiangxia.
Just as Li Jiangxia mounted the spirit horse and turned its head, a man stepped out from the left, as if he had been standing there for some time, and shouted past the guards, "Third highness! Third highness!"
Li Jiangxia lowered his gaze, somewhat puzzled. His elder brother Li Jianglong arrived a step behind him, glanced once, then quickly came forward with a smile. "Third brother, you may not know him. He is a concubine-born son of a family brother from the twenty-sixth branch, outside the main lineage, given the single name Hun."
1. 御 (yù) means to govern, to control, to command, to drive, or to ward off. In Daoist or martial contexts it often conveys the sense of 'to wield' (as in 御剑 — to ride or command a sword). 辛 (xīn) commonly means 'bitter,' 'pungent,' or “hardship.” In classical cosmology it is also the eighth of the Ten Heavenly Stems (天干), associated with the Metal element and a sharp, cutting quality. Together, 御辛 (Yùxīn) can be understood as 'to command the Xin stem/metallic essence,' or more figuratively 'to wield sharpness, to master hardship.' ☜
2. 立 (lì) means to stand, to establish, to set upright. 阳 (yáng) means sun, sunlight, yang (the bright, active, masculine principle in yin–yang philosophy); also refers to brightness, vitality, positive energy, or the sun-facing side of a mountain. When put together, 立阳(Liyang) can be read literally as 'to establish the sun/yang' or 'to set up the yang (energy).' ☜
3. 青 (qīng) means 'blue-green, azure, youthful, pure'. 尺 (chǐ) means 'a chi (an ancient unit of length, about one-third of a meter)', and can also mean 'a short straight blade or ruler'. 青尺 (Qīngchǐ) means 'Azure Chi' or 'Blue-Green Blade', often evoking the image of a short, straight sword shining with azure light. ☜
4. 月 (yuè) means 'moon' or 'moonlight'. 阙 (què) means 'watchtower, palace gate, or lofty pavilion'; it can also suggest something lofty, grand, or elevated. Together 月阙 (Yuèquè) can mean 'Moon Pavilion' or 'Moon Gate', often evoking an image of a celestial palace beneath the moon, a lofty and ethereal place associated with immortality and the heavens. ☜
5. Referring to the Profound Horn Treasured Cluster Pine ☜