Unsheathed

Chapter 324 (1): So That's How It Is

A light snow coin was pinched between the old Daoist priest's fingers, and it gradually vanished bit by bit.

He left the capital of Southern Garden Nation with a single stride, silently arriving at the ruins of Bull Mountain. Even Yu Zhenyi, who had constructed a thatched cottage and decided to cultivate here, didn't notice anything out of the ordinary.

Right now, Yu Zhenyi was standing outside his simple thatched cottage, bathing in the moonlight with his hands clasped behind his back. He had already ordered the elites of Lake Mountain Faction as well as his several direct disciples to return to the sect, and they were told to keep a low profile for the near term.

The childlike leader of the righteous forces in the world was now wearing a silver-colored lotus flower hat. This was as per the agreement between them. After they succeeded, Ding Ying would give him this Daoist hat named Seeking Profound. This was the most mystical immortal treasure in the history of the Lotus Flower Blessed Land. Not one of the most mystical, but the most mystical.

Apart from possessing the ability to automatically protect its owner's physical body and soul, it was also able to temper one's body and calm one's mind. Most importantly, this Daoist hat could help one find the otherworldly immortals who were hidden in this world.

Yu Zhenyi had roughly mastered the mystical ability to observe mountains and rivers through his palms already. When gazing at the capital of Southern Garden Nation from the distant peak of Bull Mountain back then, Ding Ying, Chen Ping'an, Lu Fang, and a few others had appeared like the most dazzling and eye-catching specks of light in the world.

Now that he had obtained this Daoist hat, his ability to find otherworldly immortals became even more comprehensive. As long as he managed to break free from the imminent encirclement, he was ninety percent confident that otherworldly immortals wouldn't be able to escape from his grasp in the future. They would find it extremely difficult to do anything.

A colored glaze flying sword hovered beside Yu Zhenyi.

Inside his sleeve was another valuable immortal tool that he had just obtained.

The young Daoist priest carrying a huge golden gourd on his back had indeed kept his word. Those who had walked down the city wall and been unwilling to ascend had all obtained an immortal treasure. After arriving at the flattened remains of Bull Mountain, Yu Zhenyi had found an imperial genealogy book. This was something that ancient rulers used to "inform the heavens" when paying homage to heaven and earth.

However, the characters in the book were strange, and there was no mention of the four nations. Yu Zhenyi knew that the answers most likely rested with Reverence Pagoda or Mirror Heart Hall, the two forces who understood otherworldly immortals from beyond the heavens the most.

Yu Zhenyi felt complete indifference toward Ding Ying's death. He naturally didn't feel any sadness. At most, he was simply irritated about Ding Ying falling at the final hurdle, forcing him to make many significant changes to his and Lake Mountain Faction's numerous plans.

Ding Ying was battling the heavens, while he was seeking to rule the mortal world.

This was the tacit understanding that had developed between Ding Ying and Yu Zhenyi. Their Great Dao complemented each other's, so the leader of the righteous forces and the leader of the demonic forces who should have been most likely to fight to the death with each other had instead chosen to form an alliance in secret, setting up the final battles in the capital of Southern Garden Nation.

The difference between them was that Ding Ying wanted to kill everyone on the list of Upper Ten Elites minus the two of them, while Yu Zhenyi only targeted otherworldly immortals. In other words, Yu Zhenyi had only targeted Zhou Fei, Tong Qingqing, Feng Qingbai, and of course the most recent arrival, Chen Ping'an.

Yu Zhenyi started to take a walk under the moonlight, with each inhalation and exhalation being a form of cultivation. This was also the fundamental reason Yu Zhenyi had the incredible will and resolve to abandon his pinnacle martial arts cultivation in the past.

The most important quality in cultivation was the strength of one's mind, and it was this lofty peak that Yu Zhenyi truly yearned to reach. The realm of martial arts was far too low and basic, and those brutes in the cultivation world were essentially rolling around in mud their entire lives without realizing their own crudeness.

People like Cheng Yuanshan were insatiably greedy, and they hoped to take possession of everything that they laid eyes on. People like Tang Tieyi coveted power and influence on the battlefield, and they dreamed of one day ruling over the world and possessing all beautiful women, thinking that it would be even better if they went down in history with a good reputation.

However, such people didn't understand that all would be moot and impermanent if one didn't obtain longevity. Meanwhile, people like Liu Zong were extremely stubborn in their pursuit of a single goal, with Liu Zong seeking only to increase his raw strength. People like this weren't worth a mention.

However, it was a pity about Zhong Qiu.

They were once intimate friends, yet Zhong Qiu had now erected a barrier and imprisoned himself within.

Yu Zhenyi walked in any direction that his mind led him, and his stride varied and lacked any consistency. His steps were sometimes the same as those of ordinary people, and they were sometimes more than thirty meters in length. However, he never walked too far in any certain direction. There were also times when he would leisurely stroll along a large and formless arc.

This scene struck fear and apprehension into the hearts of those meritorious generals from Southern Garden Nation who were guarding various checkpoints around Bull Mountain. They were terrified that they would suffer the great misfortune of Yu Zhenyi choosing to break free from their direction.

The capital was extremely close, close enough to see with the naked eye if they turned around. This also meant that the emperor could see their each and every move. Thus, who dared to retreat and shirk responsibility if Yu Zhenyi decided to attack and attempt to break free tonight?

No one thought that marshaling ten thousand or so elite troops from the capital to encircle a "little child" was strange or hilarious.

After all, who had imagined that a battle between two grandmasters could annihilate the entire Bull Mountain? They were mortal humans who were versed in strategy and skilled in battle, and they could die in contentment if they were fighting against fellow mortals on the battlefield.

However, to die from a single flick of an immortal's sleeve or a single snap of their fingers? Perhaps they would die before they could even catch sight of their immortal opponent's appearance. Not only that, but swathes and swathes of them would die at a single time, leaving a mountain of corpses in the immortal's wake. What kind of fucking death was that?!

Yu Zhenyi naturally wouldn't care about the thoughts of these generals and soldiers from Southern Garden Nation.

Right now, there were only two people whom he truly cared about. Tong Qingqing was one of them, and she was still yet to become involved in the conflict even now. When standing on the city wall back then, even Yu Zhenyi had felt a slight sense of danger when Tong Qingqing had grabbed a sword from the shattered copper mirror.

However, there was someone whom Yu Zhenyi feared even more. That was naturally Chen Ping'an, the young otherworldly immortal who had ruthlessly killed Old Demon Ding in a head-on battle.

Yu Zhenyi wasn't afraid of the huge army encircling him. In fact, he wouldn't be afraid of fighting with Tong Qingqing either.

However, he didn't dare to let his guard down against Chen Ping'an.

No matter how he wracked his brain, Yu Zhenyi couldn't think of why Chen Ping'an hadn't obstructed him from traveling here to absorb the abundant spiritual energy, thereby allowing his cultivation base to rise steadily.

Perhaps he had suffered extremely grave wounds during his battle with Ding Ying? Perhaps he was nothing more than an empty shell of his former self right now?

And it was because of this that Chen Ping'an had purposely stopped before walking through the city gate and entering the capital? Rather than threatening them, he was actually acting mystical on purpose in order to trick all of the superior grandmasters on the city wall?

Yu Zhenyi stopped and looked toward the capital, its outline glowing softly under the radiance of the moon. However, he ultimately decided against charging over to probe the situation.

After all, things would genuinely become disastrous if Chen Ping'an teamed up with Mirror Heart Hall as well as Imperial Preceptor Zhong Qiu. At that time, with Tang Tieyi and Cheng Yuanshan's swaying loyalty, they would definitely choose the more powerful side and comprehensively side with Southern Garden Nation.

Yu Zhenyi returned to his thatched cottage, reaching out with a hand and lightly running his palm over the colored glaze flying sword.

He was able to fly on his sword with the demeanor of an immortal now, yet he was still far from becoming truly free and untroubled like those immortals in the books. He was unable to ascend to great heights, and unable to travel on the wind for great distances. This was truly a great shame.

Yu Zhenyi's gaze shifted upward toward the bright moon. There would eventually come a day when he would soar through the air on his flying sword and travel above the head of the mortal world. He would peer down at the mountains and rivers, and only the sun, moon, and stars would be loftier than him.

However, Yu Zhenyi suddenly lowered his gaze. A blurry figure was standing on the ruined city wall that was still undergoing repairs, yet in Yu Zhenyi's eyes, what appeared there was a radiant and detestable ball of light.

"You've come already?" Yu Zhenyi asked with a cold chuckle.

Atop the city wall was a young Daoist Nun with a sword strapped to her back. She was sitting cross-legged on a merlon, and holding a ceramic pot still piping hot in one hand.

An appetizing fragrance wafted through the air, and the chopsticks in her other hand moved like a blur as she enjoyed the delicious food and mumbled, "Good heavens, this dish is so incredibly delicious! However, it's just too bloody spicy. Ah, geez, I can't buy two portions at once next time."

Several soldiers on horseback exited the city gate beneath her, galloping toward the ten thousand soldiers in the distance to deliver a military command personally issued by the emperor.

Of the imperial guard and the three armies stationed around the capital, only the large army responsible for guarding the northern city gate was ordered to remain and defend the gate to their last breath. The other armies were all ordered to leave their stations and retreat ten kilometers.

It was as if they were creating space for someone.

Indeed, they were creating space for Yu Zhenyi and the breathtakingly beautiful Daoist Nun sitting on the city wall.

Huang Ting was still slurping up the delicious food, and would only look up occasionally to glance toward the direction of the flattened Bull Mountain. If Yu Zhenyi decided to flee with all his might, she would be left with no option but to watch him vanish. She definitely couldn't catch up to him.

After finishing her meal, Daoist Nun Huang Ting from Peace and Tranquility Mountain placed the ceramic pot beside her and lightly placed the pair of chopsticks on top of the pot.

She stood up and patted her stomach, her face filled with regret as she grumbled, "I went over the top with this midnight snack... Now I'm going to gain another kilo... Sigh... Fan Wan'er, you sure were into rice bowls. Or maybe I should say rice buckets."[1]

She sat and waited until all three elite armies of Southern Garden Nation started to slowly retreat from their position.

Huang Ting had an intense and unrestrained look in her eyes as she glared in Yu Zhenyi's direction. She wiped her mouth clean and said in a soft voice, "Well, anyway, I'll probably lose this weight again after I finish this battle."

1. Huang Ting is making a wordplay here out of Fan Wan'er's name. Fan Wan (樊莞) is a homonym of "rice bowl" (饭碗), and calling someone a rice bucket (饭桶) is calling them a glutton. ☜