Eternal Swordmaster
Chapter 281 - 274 Journey - Part 2

Chapter 281: Chapter 274 Journey - Part 2

Lin Xin noticed that this group of Red Spine Sect people were carrying a large white banner, on which a large blood-red character "Zhou" was written.

"Zhou... Zhou Huaisha?"

Zhou Huaisha, ranked sixth on the Heavenly List, also known as the Skin Peeler, was once a demon path giant owl pursued and wanted by the strongest period of Heaven’s Fate Path for hundreds of years. Years ago, he challenged Huang Yuerong and was defeated by her in three moves and then was taken under her command, known as King Red Flag.

Along with him, there was Meng Xinruo, the enchantress, ranked eighth on the Heavenly List. She too was subdued by Huang Yuerong and became the strongest and most reliable right- and left-hand man of the Red Spine Sect, managing the stability of the eastern and western regions.

As the boat slowly slid by, the Seven Kills Sect’s station grew further and further away until the sun set in the west, the light dimmed, and it was obscured by the reeds, and Lin Xin finally retracted his gaze.

After passing the Seven Kills Sect and disembarking, Lin Xin turned the carriage and rushed along the way. After several days, passing through two large cities, he finally entered the destination of this journey—a province known as Shaluo Township.

Shaluo Township was full of hills and forests with primitive terrain; in many areas, there were no roads for carriages, and one could only travel on foot.

Lin Xin replenished his food and water in a small town on the border, purchased a robust horse, and followed a team of path-knowing escorts into Shaluo Township.

He did not use his spiritual energy and traveled entirely like an ordinary person, his face calm and unhurried. Such a state was most suitable for suppressing illusions and corruption.

The people of the escort team were also mostly kind, thinking him just an ordinary person, and thus took good care of many things. Along the way through mountains and forests, there were no incidents.

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

Bang!!!

A burst of crimson flames rose into the sky from a distant mountain top.

The flames resembled the shape of a mushroom cloud following an explosion.

The escort team, leading the carriages slowly forward, suddenly saw the explosion ahead and the horses neighed in panic.

A few escort masters quickly grabbed them to prevent them from running wild.

The elder escort master of the escort agency, Huang Meng, saw the explosion and his face instantly changed.

"That is... Mirror Mystique Sect!!"

"Uncle!"

A nimble and slender girl jumped off the carriage, her expression equally grave as she looked toward the distant mountaintop flames.

"What’s the matter? Isn’t that the Mirror Mystique Sect we are supposed to pass through?"

"Yes, it seems there has been an incident," the escort leader said somberly, "Recently, incidents are happening everywhere, it looks like Red Spine Sect has made a move again."

"How can Red Spine Sect interfere everywhere!" the girl protested indignantly, "Aren’t they afraid of the imperial clan of the dynasty!?"

The escort leader was silent for a moment, did not respond, and signaled to the halted caravan to continue on their way.

The rest of the caravan were also somewhat panicky. Mirror Mystique Sect was a major sect nearby responsible for suppressing anomalies and various eccentricities. With this mishap, it seemed likely that all sorts of demons and spirits would take this opportunity to wreak havoc.

How long the peace of this journey could be maintained was truly an unknown.

"Continue the journey!" the escort leader called out loudly. "Raise the Pang Dao flag!"

"Yes!"

Several swordsmen quickly raised the main flag of the escort agency, waving high. Pang Dao Escort Agency was a powerful force with branches in many parts of the Central Prefecture; usually, rogue forces and outlaws showed some respect. Perhaps it could add a bit of safety.

The caravan slowly continued forward, and a Confucian scholar with white-streaked temples leaned out from the back of the caravan, carrying a red longsword on his back. He appeared thin and frail, wrapped in many white bandages, looking severely injured.

Cough, cough, cough!

He couldn’t help but cough a few times, turning his head to ask one of the escort masters.

"Xiao Liu, do you know what happened ahead? Why is the whole caravan a bit off?"

The escort master was a young and robust man with a simple face, ranked sixth in his family, and because he was uneducated, he always respected those literate scholars. Hearing the question, he replied respectfully.

"Mr. Hong, there has been an incident at the Mirror Mystique Sect. Our escort leader, Uncle Five, has also lost confidence in ensuring our safety. So..." he explained with a troubled face.

"Mirror Mystique Sect, huh..." The scholar wore a black scarf covering part of his face, hiding some of his decaying skin. "Do you know exactly what happened?"

Xiao Liu said helplessly,

"Mirror Mystique Sect is the largest sect nearby. Not only does it house divinely skilled cultivators and immortals, but it is also said to possess world-turning divine weapons. But that explosion just now came from the peak of Threshold Peak, where the sect headquarters are... It looks quite ominous."

"It’s more than ominous. It could be a calamity!" Along with the escort caravan, there were several travelers who, upon hearing this news, turned pale and couldn’t help but join the conversation.

At this moment, the nimble young girl from the front of the escort agency, dressed in a dark fitted outfit with a curved dagger at her waist, walked back toward the group.

"Ladies and gentlemen, at this point, the escort cannot guarantee your safety anymore. We will return all the silver taels paid. For your safety, it’s best you head back now to avoid further dangers as night falls," the girl earnestly advised.

After she had spoken, an escort master by her side immediately counted out the Silver Tael and returned them one by one, according to the record.

Without her having to say more, several passengers at the back of the line promptly received their Silver Tael and hurriedly left, most of them in groups.

Only the Confucian Scholar, wrapped tightly from head to toe, remained seated on his horse, unmoved as if he had not heard.

"Excuse me, sir?"

The girl from the escort agency walked up to him.

"Here, we can’t guarantee your safety anymore. Given the sudden circumstances, we hope you can understand, sir."

"Ling’er, come here right away; we need to change our route!" the voice of Uncle Wu from the front of the group called out from afar.

The girl responded and looked back again at the middle-aged Confucian Scholar who had stayed behind.

"Are you not leaving, sir?"

"No need, I must go that way. Once I return, I do not know how long it will be before I can cross this stretch again. I might as well take a gamble this time; perhaps I’ll be lucky enough to get through earlier," the Confucian Scholar said with resignation.

"Besides, I am not entirely defenseless." He patted the longsword on his back.

Ling’er was also at a loss. She had seen too many adventurers overconfident in their abilities. But what they might encounter this time were no ordinary troubles; the path could only be safely traversed under the coercion of the Mirror Mystique Sect by formidable outlaws and tyrants who roamed the Green Forest.

"The dangers up ahead are beyond your imagination; this isn’t just your average bandit from the Green Forest. You should really go back," she continued to persuade him.

"It’s fine, it’s fine. You go on; don’t worry about me," the Confucian Scholar said with a smile, calmly.

Seeing his composure, had he been carrying a saber instead of a sword, Ling’er might have fantasized that he was some reclusive expert venturing out into the world.

There are countless great saber wielders in these times, but far too few swordsmen. Among the ten people of the Heavenly List, none wield a sword... The renowned sword masters in the entire Central Prefecture can be counted on one hand. Moreover, that sword, at first glance full of ornate filigree, seemed pompous and impractical — as if it would break upon the slightest contact, hardly suitable for combat, let alone killing an enemy.

After further persuasion, seeing that he had no intention of leaving, she had no choice but to ignore him and return to the front of the group.

"Have all the people at the back been dispersed?" Uncle Wu asked in a low voice.

"Almost. But there’s still one who insists on going along, hoping for the best. He won’t listen to my advice," Ling’er replied helplessly.

"Then let him be. There are many who are willing to take such risks; we can’t be responsible for everyone," Uncle Wu waved his hand. "I’ve planned an alternative route; what do you think? You’ve traveled this path before with your father. I’m not very familiar with it, but you should remember it."

Ling’er leaned in and started to discuss the route quietly with him.

The Confucian Scholar at the back of the group was Lin Xin.

At this moment, with his face covered and a veil separating him, he gazed toward the summit of Threshold Peak where Mirror Mystique Sect was located, in the midst of a rising tumult of flames, two figures fiercely clashing.

From afar, waves of extremely high-frequency sound waves spread, inaudible to ordinary people, but he, who cultivated the "Nine Morning Melody" and was sensitive to sound waves to a terrifying degree, could faintly make out the noise from there.

The cultivation levels of the two people fighting were both at Taoist Master level, yet what Lin Xin cared about was not this but their clothing and identities.

One of them wore white with a vivid blood-red vertical line running down his back, resembling a clear bloody wound, a symbol of the Red Spine Sect.

Simple, yet memorable.

The other wore a golden crown with a long luxurious robe, and a golden vertical line on his forehead, signifying his status within the Imperial Clan.

"Has the Red Spine Sect started to disregard even the Imperial Clan?"

Lin Xin watched the fierce battle unfold. Although the Red Spine Sect was not his concern, this upheaval that rocked the entire Central Prefecture was something he remained detached from. Yet, this kind of arrogance, that even the last semblance of face maintained by the orderly Imperial Clan was disregarded and openly challenged, struck even an outsider like him.

The procession slowly entered a pine forest, and the fiery crest of Threshold Peak behind Mirror Mystique Sect gradually disappeared from their view.

Uncle Wu rode at the front, side by side with Ling’er on their horses.

"The Imperial Clan stands behind Mirror Mystique Sect, the greatest force under the Fifth Prince. For the Red Spine Sect to make a move against it, it signifies that..." He didn’t finish his sentence but sighed deeply instead.

The last façade that the Wang Family had maintained was now forcibly ripped away by the violence of the Red Spine Sect.

Ling’er’s heart also sank. The order of the world had always been maintained under a finely balanced force by the Dynasty, but now, with the prestige of the Dynasty trampled upon and the Red Spine Sect exposing the Wang Family’s weakness, the consequences, once out, would lead to...

Heroes rising up together, leading to a massive upheaval, was almost an inevitable scenario.

The two spoke softly, but with Lin Xin’s exceptional hearing, he could understand everything clearly.

"The Fifth Prince..." He suddenly recalled the man he saw just before with a golden line on his forehead, a man of impressive power and noble bearing, possibly the Fifth Prince they were referring to. The members of the Red Spine Sect dared to openly confront even the Fifth Prince, showing him no respect...

He shook his head slightly.

"Forget it; let’s not bother with that. Whatever happens, it has nothing to do with me. My only goal is to find that power in the far west court of the same origin as the Green Fish Lantern — ’Because.’ Whether it’s Huang Yuerong or Yuan Qiuque, they’re too far from me...."

....(To be continued. If you like this work, you’re welcome to vote and send gift messages on Qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please visit m.qidian.com to read.)