Chapter 157 (Patreon)

“Brother!”“Xinmo. There you are!”Xinmo turned his head and saw his two sisters rushing toward him, their master following behind in a leisurely pace.

“What are you guys doing here?” Xinmo asked with a smile.

“We heard that you came back from your mission,” Xinjiang said.

“Master told us you fought with a Winged Tiger; is that true?” Xinxi asked.

‘Has word spread so quickly? Is it really that big of a deal?’

After he had slain the Winged Tiger, Xinmo didn’t really consider the implications. He was too distracted by the surge of power he felt coursing through him. He figured his bloodline had probably advanced to the Founding grade. His sisters had experienced the same thing when they comprehended sword intent at the 4th tier, and were currently working on developing their Bloodline Ability with their Master.

It was a bit strange, though; he was certain that it only happened after they comprehended it at the 4th tier, and no sooner.

He wondered if his own intent had actually leapt to the 4th tier in one fell swoop, or if perhaps his own bloodline was just stronger. He was almost at the peak of the master stage, after all.

‘I wonder if there is a way to test it.’

Xinmo hadn’t told anyone about comprehending sword intent. He didn’t know why, really; he was just used to keeping things to himself. 

He would definitely have to say something eventually, though. Comprehending sword intent meant there was a chance for him to become an inner disciple, and he wasn’t stupid enough to pass on that opportunity.

He would prefer to tell his father first, though. 

‘I’ll write a letter when I come back and ask them to visit. After I tell Mom and Dad, I’ll reveal it to Bian Fenglin and see what he says.’

He was honestly still in a bit of a shock. He had always believed he would be able to comprehend sword intent one day, but now that it had happened, it felt unreal.

Especially since he managed to comprehend his very own sword intent, something he had thought about day and night for over a decade.

To finally reach his goal, just barely with his life intact, was going to take some time to take in.

“Brother?” Xinxi asked.

“Sorry,” Xinmo said, snapping out of his daze. “Yeah. It’s true.”“What was it like?” Xinjiang asked, eyes practically glowing.

“Terrifying,” Xinmo answered solemnly. That beast was something out of the ordinary, to be certain. When Bian Fenglin had taken a look at it, he had confirmed Xinmo’s suspicions that the beast was only in the middle Qi Refining stage.

“Are you hurt very badly?” Xinjiang asked worriedly, glancing down at the bandage wrapped around his torso.

“Just a scratch,” Xinmo answered with a smile.

He had, of course, been very seriously hurt, but he carried a healing pill of the 2nd grade with him, given by his grandfather. It had worked wonders, and allowed Xinmo to go to the camp the Sword Sect had set up after his fight.

When he came back to the sect, Bian Fenglin had also given him the bandage that he was wearing. It was apparently some kind of spiritual artifact, and would make sure that everything healed right.

“How did you kill it?” Elder Renmeng asked from behind the twins.

“Er,” Xinmo was a bit caught off guard. This Master of his sisters had never really paid him much attention; it was the first time she had ever asked him a question.

“I got lucky. Very lucky,” Xinmo answered. He knew better than to lie to a Golden Core cultivator.

“Lucky how? Explain?” Elder Renmeng asked, not allowing him to wriggle his way out of answering.

‘Maybe I should just tell her.’

She would know eventually, and Xinmo doubted she would tell his father, spoiling the surprise.

“I comprehended sword intent,” Xinmo answered.

“You did?” Xinxi and Xinjiang exclaimed in unison, breaking into smiles.

“Yeah,” Xinmo said, nodding. “What? You didn’t think I could do it?”“We knew you could do it. Of course we did, brother,” Xinxi said with a laugh. “Have you told Mom and Dad?”“Not yet. I want to tell them in person. I’ll write-”

“What kind of intent? I don’t feel anything. Show me,” Elder Renmeng interrupted, taking a step closer and looking Xinmo up and down.

Xinmo felt a shiver run down his back. Being under the scrutiny of a Golden Core cultivator was very unnerving.

The problem was that his sword intent was a bit special. The only way he knew to show it was by attacking.

Just as Xinmo was about to explain, however, the doors to the reception room he had been waiting in opened, and Bian Fenglin stepped inside.

“Well, seems like we have guests,” Bian Fenglin said, looking at his sisters with a friendly smile.

“Greetings, True Person Fenglin,” The girls said, bowing slightly.

‘They finally learned some etiquette, huh?’

“No need for any formalities. We’re old friends, aren’t we?” Bian Fenglin said. He then turned to Xinmo. “The Sect Master wants to see you. Let’s not keep her waiting.”“The Sect Master?” Xinxi and Xinjiang exclaimed in surprise.

Xinmo was taken aback as well. Bian Fenglin had brought him over to the Main Mountain in case he needed to explain what he had experienced to anyone, but Xinmo would never have guessed that the Sect Master herself would be the one questioning him.

“Alright,” Xinmo said, his voice slightly shaky, rising to his feet.

–

“It’s a strange cut, no?” Zeren asked, glancing at the body of the Winged Tiger in the middle of the hall.

‘Finally someone brought it up.’ Baimeng thought to herself. 

It was obvious at first glance that something was off about those two evenly sliced parts of the body. But her nephew hadn’t explained anything, just saying that an outer disciple was the one responsible for killing it.

With the implications of a member of the Winged Tiger Clan so close to their territory, everyone focused on the reason it would appear here rather than how it had been killed.

“It’s like someone sliced it physically,” Longti remarked as he rose from his seat and walked up to the corpse with a casual posture.

“With such precision? It’s impossible,” Old Jiansu commented from his seat. “There is not a hint of qi. It has to be sword intent.”The hall turned quiet for a moment, with all the Peak Masters extending their divine senses, examining the body once again.

“Why can’t I sense it, then?” Longti questioned after a while.

“Perhaps the Sect Master has an explanation?” Weishi asked, turning to Baimeng.

She did have an explanation. But if the one who did it was actually a Qi Refiner, then it didn’t make any sense.

Baimeng didn’t know how to answer for a moment; she didn’t want to appear incompetent. These Peak masters were like hawks, waiting for the slightest hint of weakness from her.

Even if she was the Sect Master, and by far the strongest in the room, she was also the youngest. If not for the previous Sect Master, her ancestor, still residing in the back mountain, she felt that these people might very well leave and strike out on their own rather than submit to her.

Not all of them, but a few.

Luckily, her nephew returned with the child before she had to give an answer.

“Let’s just see what the boy has to say,” Baimeng said.

“This is Shu Xinmo, an outer disciple of our Sword Sect. He was the one who killed the Winged Tiger,” Fenglin introduced the boy.

“Greetings to the Sect Master and the Peak Masters,” Xinmo said, bowing deeply.

“Xinmo. Explain to us how you killed the beast,” Baimeng commanded.

The boy swallowed nervously, his eyes scanning the room carefully before explaining. “I was about to die. The Winged Tiger was way above my league. But luckily, I managed to comprehend sword intent at the last moment, killing it.”The room turned silent for a moment; Baimeng could sense how the Peak Masters examined the body once again. They didn’t doubt his words, as he really couldn’t get away with a lie in front of them.

“Show us your sword intent,” Baimeng ordered.

The boy hesitated for a moment before looking into Baimeng’s eyes.

She frowned, about to reprimand him, when she felt a jolt to her soul.

Her head jerked back slightly, involuntarily.

‘So that’s it!’

Baimeng had never considered that the boy actually had such a strange sword intent. 

It wasn’t truly a sword intent, just a side effect of one. 

His true sword intent was hidden, deeply, and immensely powerful. What struck her soul was just its echo. It was almost like a new intent, born from the sword intent he had hidden.

'Interesting.'

‘Very interesting.’

‘This is the grandson of that Shu Yang? We can’t let him go to waste as an outer disciple.’

Baimeng looked toward her nephew. She hesitated for a moment. Xinmo didn’t have much talent, just decently gifted at body cultivation. But he didn’t have spirit roots.

‘It doesn’t matter; he won’t disappoint with an intent like that. It will also give Fenglin a close connection to Shu Yang.’

“I see,” Baimeng said, nodding slowly. 

‘I’ll tell Fenglin to accept him as his disciple later.’

“What do you see? What did the boy do? Will you just tell us what’s going on?” Old Jiansu questioned grumpily.

“Do you mind showing me too, kid?” Weishi asked, looking at Xinmo with his best effort at a friendly smile.

Baimeng frowned slightly. She could accept Old Jiansu’s behaviour; he was an old and respected Elder. He was already called Old Jiansu by Baimeng’s father when she was a little girl. She had always respected him

Longti was the Peak Master of Ziyou Peak; it was impossible to have him act properly; it went against their philosophy of the sword.

But now this Weishi also thought it was okay to step on her toes, questioning the boy without asking for her permission.

‘Have I been too lenient lately?’

She thought she had given the various factions plenty of face since she took on the role of Sect Master, hoping to bring some kind of harmony despite the Bian Family’s overwhelming power within the sect.

“Well, isn’t that something!” Weishi exclaimed with a laugh, having just received an attack from Xinmo. “Do you have a Master, kid?”‘Is he serious?’

“No, True Person,” Xinmo answered with a bow.

“How about taking this old man as your Master, then? I’m the Peak Master of Xiujian Peak, and I think you would fit in perfectly,” Weishi said.

‘Damn you!’

Baimeng could only watch it happen. Perhaps she could defend it if she took Xinmo as a disciple herself, but that was impossible. There was nothing to do. Ordering Fenglin to take him as a disciple now would cause too much disunity in an already unstable situation. And the sect needed to hold together now more than ever. The Evil West was still lurking, causing her great worry, and now the Winged Tiger Clan might be starting trouble.

“It would be my honor. I accept,” Xinmo predictably answered after a brief moment of shock.

“No, wait. Will you tell us what is going on here?” Old Jiansu demanded.

“I’ll tell you all over tea later,” Weishi answered with a laugh. “For now, we should focus on the issue of the Winged Tiger Clan, right, Sect Master?”Baimeng had to really make an effort not to lash out.

‘It doesn’t matter. The boy has an interesting sword intent, but that’s not worth anything on its own. He’s too untalented. Reaching the Foundation stage will be lucky. Forming a core would be a miracle. And reaching the Nascent Soul stage is absolutely impossible.’

‘Let Weishi have him’

Still, Baimeng couldn’t calm down entirely. Weishi was getting more and more out of hand.

‘I’ll head into the Heaven-Reaching Forest later and see what the Winged Tiger Clan is up to.’

‘If I can’t find any, I hope there are some other beasts stupid enough to get in my way so my sword can taste some blood.’