Eternal Swordmaster
Chapter 178 - 171: Encirclement - Part 1

Chapter 178: Chapter 171: Encirclement - Part 1

Lin Zhen stared at Lin Xin for a while. Lin Xin didn’t say much, just turned and slowly walked away.

He was still young. There would come a day when he would understand.

Lin Zhen, supporting Hua Yaozhu, exchanged warm pleasantries. The two were affectionate with each other, as if their bond had not just formed overnight.

Such explanations couldn’t be summed up in a sentence or two.

As Lin Xin left the courtyard, he felt somewhat melancholic. Between himself and Zhen’er, there seemed to be a slight estrangement, and he worried that a foreign woman might potentially create a rift between them.

When he returned to the main hall, Liu Yang was already waiting in the study. Seeing Lin Xin return,

"Sect Master."

"You’ve arrived," Lin Xin said, walking behind his desk to sit down.

"What do you know about Hua Yaozhu?"

"Miss Hua Yaozhu?" Liu Yang frowned slightly. "Actually, we are also puzzled by news of this lady. However, you had been busy with affairs recently, so it wasn’t reported in time."

"Oh?"

Lin Xin also gave a light gasp.

"Bring me all the intelligence on her."

"I’ll have someone fetch it later," Liu Yang paused, "But Sect Master, a mere non-inner house member..."

He was somewhat puzzled.

"You need not concern yourself with that. Also, how is young master Luo’s situation now?" Lin Xin continued to ask.

"Young master Luo went to the Jin Kingdom. I heard that he accidentally discovered a code of law..."

"It probably wasn’t accidental, was it...?" Lin Xin flipped through some intelligence scrolls sent by Gongsun Li. "The Nine Heavens and Earth Extinguishing Great Law? When did Lin Luo begin his cultivation practice with this technique?"

Liu Yang’s forehead broke out in a slight sweat.

"I don’t know. Young master Luo recently made a trip to the Empty Path and seems to have entered the Evil Spirit Palace. After returning, he began cultivation practice, but we didn’t know it was this code of law..."

"The Nine Heavens and Earth Extinguishing Great Law, a cruel cultivation decision based primarily on self-harm, I can understand his urgency, but..." Lin Xin frowned as well; had he not been well-read, he might not even have known of this technique’s name.

This technique was not from the Demon Path but a genuine Qi Cultivation Technique, albeit too extreme. Each strike potentially consumed the practitioner’s life energy, thus trading for terrifyingly abnormal combat power. Lethality, speed, defense, and even restorative abilities would become frightfully potent at the expense of life energy.

Life energy here referred to the term for lifespan.

Lin Xin worried that Lin Luo might overuse his life energy, potentially leading to premature aging...

"Everyone has the right to choose their own path; I have no right to interfere. From now on, double the elixir resources for young master Luo."

"Yes," Liu Yang, as the acting Sect Master and the overseer of all Radiant Sun Sect’s affairs, was responsible for allocating the Sect’s various resources.

"Moreover, we’ve encountered a significant client at the gates. He inquired whether we could take on a big job. As you were present, I wanted to ask for your advice," Liu Yang whispered.

"What client?" Lin Xin was curious; Liu Yang wouldn’t ask so seriously for a typical client.

"He has posted an assassination mission. However, the difficulty level is very high," Liu Yang spoke in a lower voice. "It is close to the Taoist Master level."

"Close to Taoist Master level?"

Lin Xin was slightly startled.

"Teacher, if possible, how about I take it?" Nan Shunqing stepped briskly into the room, four swords slung on his back, his movements steady and poised, exuding an aura of overpowering dominance.

"Did you hear?" Lin Xin smiled. "Qing’er, weren’t you receiving your friend?"

"Receiving?" Nan Shunqing was also stunned. "Oh, him. I just dealt with him casually; he was only trying to ingratiate himself. Our paths do not align."

"You want to take on this mission?" Lin Xin asked.

"Just out of boredom." Nan Shunqing touched a small pouch on his belt. "I’ve recently acquired some new stuff and was looking to test it out."

Lin Xin didn’t inquire further.

"Assassination is different from your usual tasks, but since you have experience from the Red Chamber, I’ll leave this to you. However, I hope you will be as cautious as possible."

He continued, "You’re definitely being watched now. A small mistake could very well result in being surrounded by the Red Chamber’s Star Calamity Hall."

"I understand," Nan Shunqing nodded. "By the way, master, I have long wanted to discuss my third brother’s matter with you."

"Are you referring to Zhen’er?" Lin Xin’s brows furrowed deeper.

"Yes," Nan Shunqing said solemnly. "I have advised him several times to no avail. To speak frankly, I have been to the Red Chamber and met many so-called witches and evil spirits. Yaozhu now gives me a sensation very similar to those spirits."

"Evil spirits..." Lin Xin, hearing this, already sensed the severity of the problem. Recalling his recent meeting with Hua Yaozhu, her sudden burst in movement and attacking stance indeed seemed very much like that of the Red Chamber’s witches.

"I’ll look into this matter," Liu Yang said seriously, "no need to trouble young master Qing."

"Thank you for your hard work, Brother Yang," Nan Shunqing bowed.

"It’s my duty."

"Then can we discuss the details of the mission? I want to see if it conflicts with my schedule," Nan Shunqing said with a smile, as if the assassination mission were an inconsequential task.

"There shouldn’t be any scheduling conflicts, but do you have other pressing matters, young master?" Liu Yang asked curiously.

Lin Xin also looked at him curiously.

"This time, my visit is mainly to seek advice from Master regarding this matter," Nan Shunqing also nodded.

"Seek advice? Go ahead," Lin Xin said to him.

"The alliance of the Four Sects has gathered experts to attempt to exterminate the Insect Mother, and nearly all the experts in the vicinity have been summoned. As a lone cultivator, I too have received an invitation," Nan Shunqing said, his expression tinged with excitement.

"You want to go?" Lin Xin had heard about this campaign against the Insect Mother. The Four Sects were sending their best, led by an expert from the Daoist Cloud Sect.

"Yes, I do!" Nan Shunqing stated firmly. "In a man’s life, participating in such a grand affair is the true meaning of our existence! Since my birth, I have toiled in my cultivation practice and sacrificial refinement of magic artifacts. If I cannot ride forth before the eyes of the world, would not all my efforts have been in vain?"

Lin Xin understood Nan Shunqing’s sentiments. He himself had experienced much after diligently honing his skills, and it was indeed the time for him to ride forth spiritedly. If he were to travel incognito by night, it would dampen his spirit.

"You want to go, but do you realize how terrifying the Insect Mother is? You are the most talented and promising disciple in our manor, and in the entire Music Prefecture, possibly capable of breaking through to the top echelons. If something were to happen..." He was still worried.

"The eagle must leave the nest to spread its wings," Nan Shunqing said fearlessly. "Master," he bowed his head, a calm and gentle look in his eyes.

"You very well know that I’ve been hiding a lot from you, yet you never question me and give me all the support you can. Perhaps you are not the best teacher in the world, but you are certainly the teacher I respect the most."

Lin Xin was touched. Over the years, Nan Shunqing was the disciple who had occupied most of his thoughts, far more than even his own son, Lin Zhen. Almost every time Lin Xin left the ghostly mansion, he would first inquire about Nan Shunqing.

"Actually, Master," Nan Shunqing suddenly switched to whispering, "do you want to know why my cultivation level has improved so quickly?"

Lin Xin looked intently at him. After a moment, he finally spoke.

"I don’t."

He watched as Nan Shunqing’s expression turned to astonished, and he said lightly,

"Qing’er, if a secret is revealed, it’s no longer a secret... do you understand?"

Nan Shunqing was taken aback for a moment, then after pondering, his face showed respect.

"Disciple understands."

"Remember, always remember, that you have me and the manor behind you. You are never alone," Lin Xin said lightly. "A fledgling eagle cannot soar the skies if it never leaves the nest."

Nan Shunqing nodded solemnly.

"I will remember! If ...," he paused, "if I return from this trip, I must..."

"You must return. There are no ifs, nothing else is important," Lin Xin interrupted him.

Nan Shunqing fell silent for a while before taking a deep breath and nodding.

"Understood."

***********************

Ghostly Mansion

Dark clouds hovered above, and among the layers of clouds, a series of tiny specks flitted around the dark skies.

The specks were black and white, continuously interacting with each other, sparking blinding white flashes, as if something was fiercely clashing.

At the edge of a dark cloud,

Broadus Chen walked on the back of a giant red crocodile, measuring over ten meters long and seven to eight meters wide, flanked by two old Taoists, each holding horsetail whisks. They looked outward from the edge of the clouds.

Below them, vast expanses of mountain ranges interspersed with sparse Blood-Red Dojos. Many panicked little figures in red robes were rushing out of the dojos, and about dozens of them were slowly ascending, most of them holding stamps, ribbons, and various types of magic artifacts. Amidst the flashing red lights and chilling blood aura, a bitter wind blew.

"Daoist Masters, the Cloud Ascendant Formation has been set. Under this heavenly net and earthly trap, these insubstantial demon followers will surely be completely annihilated," Broadus Chen said with a fan in his hand, his light laughter carrying a hint of pointing out stratagems.

Of the two old Taoists, one had a small, neat red birthmark on his left cheek, while the other was fine except for his lips which faintly shimmered with a silver light.

"Your Highness should not underestimate them. These demon followers have managed to escape from multiple encirclements by the Imperial Court and have surely got unknown sources of information and strategies..."

Behind Broadus Chen stood dozens of armored cultivators on Flying Swords, their ranks stern and cold, each holding a Long Halberd, with dark miasma swirling around the spear tips.

"With two Elemental Energy Realm experts here, these demons are not worth mentioning," he said arrogantly, unconcerned.

"Indeed, with the two of us here, if we still let these demons escape, that would really be..."

Below them, the red crocodile beneath their feet reared fiercly, its armored body dimly seen. Each scale was encrusted with intricate runes, having been sacrificially inscribed by talisman experts.

Outside the mountain range’s dojos,

A shadow, faint and almost imperceptible, flitted by, swiftly moving through the woods, without even stirring a single leaf or blade of grass.

Light as a ghost,

The shadow passed through the dense forest and suddenly stopped on the outskirts of a dojo, transforming into the form of a middle-aged scholar with Dual Swords hanging at his waist, a serene expression on his face, dressed in gray, exuding the leisurely composure of a scholar.

This man was Lin Xin, who had come here as per the agreement.

"According to the agreement with Broadus Chen, this should be the place,"

Sounds of shouting and the bustling of large groups of people emanated from far around. Waves of spiritual energy oscillated, figures hastily ascended, and faint red smoke began to drift around the outskirts of the dojo—it was the subtly lustful and highly poisonous Poisonous Smoke.

Forewarned by Broadus Chen, Lin Xin dared not approach too closely.

"Demon Path? Hehe," he mused on the name and understood what sort of sect this demon cult was.

"The Poisonous Formation has yet to be unveiled. Once Broadus Chen initiates the attack, I can take advantage of the chaos..."

He faintly felt an enormously powerful presence lurking in the heart of the dojo cluster, a presence even more formidable than the Foundation Establishment Stage.

Standing outside the Poisonous Formation, Lin Xin stood with his hands behind his back, like a casual traveler-scholar, poised and relaxed, seemingly unconcerned about the imminent threat of the nearby Poisonous Smoke Formation. (To be continued. If you like this work, welcome to qidian.com to vote for Recommendation Tickets, Monthly Tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)