Chapter 290: Chapter 290: Where There Are People, There Is the Mortal World

With a flick of his sleeve, a Profound Iron Command Arrow shot into the ground. "In three days, we begin the Thirty-Six Linked Rings. If Xu Yunfan can fight eighteen consecutive matches on Profound Sky Peak without a single loss, it will count as partial approval from the peak. How about it?"

The moment he spoke, the hall erupted in an uproar.

Even Cui Yu’s pupils contracted. The Thirty-Six Linked Rings was a trial the Taoist Sect had not used for decades. The defender was required to face a gauntlet of True Inheritors from the various peaks, and the final challenge was overseen by the First Seat himself!

Bi Yuan turned his head to look at Li Zhi, a smirk playing on his lips.

"But for something like this, shouldn’t we add a little wager? Junior Brother Li, that Dragon Tiger Golden Core of yours should be ready soon, shouldn’t it? If Yunfan wins, how about we make that elixir the prize?"

Li Zhi clearly hadn’t expected Bi Yuan to raise the stakes so high, and his expression turned grim.

But the die was cast. He could only say stiffly, "And if he loses..."

"Then he simply won’t enter the Sword Burial Abyss," Bi Yuan said, his tone as casual as if he were discussing the weather. But Xu Yunfan clearly saw a hint of blood-red light flicker at the tip of his duster.

At this, Bi Yuan turned his head, his gaze as sharp as lightning, and stared directly at Li Zhi.

"What more do you want, Junior Brother Li? For me to pass on the True Skill of Qingwei Mountain to you?"

Li Zhi’s mouth twitched. ’Who wants your True Skill?’ he screamed internally. ’You think Dragon and Tiger Peak doesn’t have its own?! I want you to expel him so I can take him as my own disciple!’

"...Fine!"

Li Zhi took a deep breath and agreed.

This wasn’t a wager.

This was clearly forcing Li Zhi to bet his Treasure Pill!

Bi Yuan turned to look at Xu Yunfan. "Yunfan, are you willing?"

After a pause, Bi Yuan added in a gentler tone, "If you’re not willing, or if you think it’s too much trouble, don’t feel pressured. You can just focus on your martial arts."

Li Zhi’s expression stiffened. He truly hadn’t expected Bi Yuan to offer an out.

Meeting Bi Yuan’s gaze, Xu Yunfan took a deep breath and stepped forward. "I am willing to accept the challenge."

His voice was respectful but firm, his back as taut as a fully drawn bow.

A slight smile touched Bi Yuan’s lips, and he nodded. He had heard much about Xu Yunfan’s reputation, but only the fighting ring would reveal his true mettle.

Out of the corner of his eye, Xu Yunfan saw Li Zhi’s fingers form a subtle Sword Technique seal within his sleeve. He knew then that this fight was no longer a simple contest of qualification.

The powers lurking in the shadows were waiting to see him—the "outcast of the Celestial Craft Cave"—spill his blood on the Martial Arts Arena!

"Good! You’ve got guts!"

A burly, bearded man suddenly stepped out from behind the red-faced elder. He was an Elder from Candle Dragon Peak.

He grinned, revealing stark white teeth. "For the first match, ’Little Leiyin’ Wu Zhen from my peak will have a go with you. I hear your Hammer Technique is quite good?"

The comment was clearly aimed at Xu Yunfan’s Red Fire Dragon-Swallowing Mace.

Bi Yuan suddenly swept his duster, and an invisible wall of qi separated everyone. "That is enough for today."

He gave Xu Yunfan a deep look and sent a secret voice transmission: "Cangming will take you to the Soldier Tomb to pick a suitable weapon."

As he turned to leave, the hem of his Daoist robe swept past Li Zhi, etching seven inch-deep sword marks into the ground.

Li Zhi’s pupils contracted at the sight.

’That old bastard... his cultivation seems to have improved again.’

The Sect Leader had used his robe as a sword—a silent show of force, plowing sword marks into the very stone!

As Xu Yunfan followed Cui Yu out of the main hall, he heard the gray-robed elder sigh. "Li Zhi has secretly formed an alliance with at least twelve of the peaks... Kid, do you know why the Sect Leader would rather hold this competition than compromise?"

When Xu Yunfan shook his head, Cui Yu pointed to the distant, cloud-shrouded Sword Burial Abyss. "Buried beneath that is three thousand years of the Taoist Sect’s accumulated ’karma.’ Some are afraid that if you become the next Sect Leader, the other peaks will never get their chance to shine. The last time Li Zhi and Bi Yuan competed for the position, it nearly tore the Sect apart."

As Xu Yunfan and Cui Yu exited the main hall, they saw Chu Cangming standing on the stone steps outside, his hands clasped behind his back. His profound Daoist robe fluttered in the wind, and a hint of Sword Intent seemed to flicker between his brows. When

he saw them, the corner of his lip curled slightly. He first paid his respects to Cui Yu, addressing him as "Master Cui," before his gaze came to rest on Xu Yunfan. "Junior Brother, you are new to the Taoist Sect," he said faintly. "Master has ordered me to take you to the Soldier Tomb to select a suitable weapon."

Cui Yu gave Chu Cangming a meaningful look, then patted Xu Yunfan’s shoulder with a withered hand. "Go on now. As for the matter of the Sword Burial Abyss... we will have our answer in three days. Rest well until then."

With that, he stepped into the air and vanished before their eyes in an instant.

Xu Yunfan retracted his gaze and asked curiously, "Senior Brother Chu, it seems Master Cui isn’t very fond of you?"

Chu Cangming’s eye twitched. ’Is that something a person with a normal IQ would say?’

Of course, Xu Yunfan knew how foolish his question sounded, but he had asked it intentionally. After practicing the Linn Character Technique for so long and reaching the Minor Achievement stage, his senses had become exceptionally sharp.

This Senior Brother Chu before him might look like a cold, aloof swordsman, but he was actually radiating a considerable amount of malice.

"There are many people in the Sect," Chu Cangming replied faintly. "Some will like you, and some will not."

He then gestured for Xu Yunfan to follow.

The mountain path wound downwards. The bluestone steps were covered in a thin layer of frost, which crunched softly under their feet.

Xu Yunfan followed Chu Cangming down Qingwei Mountain and across the cloud-wreathed mountainside. Suddenly, a solitary peak appeared before them, piercing the clouds like a sword. This was the Taoist Sect’s renowned Weapon Hall Sword Peak.

The entrance to a cave at the base of the peak was half-hidden by vines. Carved on the rock face were four ancient seal-script characters, so weathered they were barely legible: "Cease All Warfare."

At the foot of the stone steps, two Weapon Hall Disciples stood guard in profound-colored martial attire, cradling swords in their arms. Their cuffs were embroidered with silver-threaded crossed swords.

Seeing Chu Cangming and Xu Yunfan approach, the disciple on the left took a step to the side, his sword scabbard blocking the path with a CLANG against the rock wall. "The Sword Peak is a restricted area. Please present your Sword Order."

A Bronze Token slid out from Chu Cangming’s sleeve. The name "Qingwei" on its face pulsed with a faint green light.

The disciple swiped a finger across the token. After confirming its authenticity, he and his companion took half a step back in unison, their scabbards scraping sparks from the bluestone. "Proceed."

The vines parted without a sound, revealing a deep, dark passage.

As Xu Yunfan stepped forward, he caught a glimpse of another partial inscription on the rock face, just below the words "Cease All Warfare."

"...Only Karma Endures."

The air in the cave was bone-chillingly cold. Droplets of water seeping from the stone walls froze into frost the moment they hit the ground. Their footsteps echoed in the narrow tunnel, sounding as if countless unseen figures were following close behind.

The so-called "Soldier Tomb" was, in fact, a gigantic cavern carved into the heart of the mountain.

The vaulted ceiling soared hundreds of feet high, studded with hundreds of Luminous Beads that illuminated the cavern as brightly as day.

Countless stone niches were carved into the walls, displaying an arsenal of sabers, spears, swords, and halberds. There were even exotic weapons like chain blades and bone whips, all of them gleaming with a cold, sinister light.

"The Soldier Tomb houses 36,000 weapons," Chu Cangming said. "All of them were seized during the Taoist Sect’s campaigns through the ages."

Chu Cangming’s fingertip brushed past a crimson long spear, and an inch-high flame instantly flickered to life on its shaft. "The Burning Earth Spear, the signature treasure of the Profound Daoist Sect two hundred years ago. After its wielder was slain by our previous Sect Leader, it became a spoil of war. The Profound Daoist Sect has demanded its return many times, but we have always refused."

He spoke in a flat, understated tone, but Xu Yunfan could easily imagine the earth-shattering conflict behind the story.

The great war between the major sects two hundred years ago had been ignited by none other than Dugu Jiu of the Sword Pavilion, the man known as the "Celestial Sword."