CHAPTER 481: CHAPTER 468 "TEN THOUSAND SWORDS RETURN TO ORIGIN

"Disciple Zhang, what’s the matter, did taking a piss turn into a swim around the pond?" Zhao Changhe asked when, from the house, someone staggered out the door. Just as they reached the corner of the doorway, they felt a numbness in their chest, having been touched on a pressure point by Yue Hongling.

The last person in the house still didn’t know what was transpiring outside. A flash of red, and they too were touched on a pressure point.

Yue Hongling took one in each hand and dragged them into the woods, questioning them one by one. When she came out to meet Zhao Changhe, they compared notes, and their statements largely matched.

"There’s a bit of a story on my side," she said. "They claim that when they first arrived, it wasn’t this cold. The weather clearly shifted into summer, but it’s only been getting colder."

"There has to be a reason for this change in the environment... Have they taken any special actions?"

Yue Hongling said, "They mentioned that Wuding laid out a Sword Array in a cave behind here, but I’m not sure if that’s the cause. The Sword Array was set up with his Wordless Sword Slaves; outsiders can’t enter. They can only stand guard for him outside. However, this place in the Snow Mountain is so bitterly cold; theoretically, no one would come here at all, so why would they vigorously stand guard? They’re just sleeping or drinking."

"No wonder the vigilance seems so lax. It seems that his Wordless Sword Slaves...," Zhao Changhe paused, reluctant to describe his friend as a Sword Slave, and referred to them by their generational title instead: "The ’Wordless’ generation that he brought isn’t vast. It hasn’t reached the state that Li Si’an described, where the Sword Pavilion is related to everything in Ba Shu."

"That’s inevitable," Yue Hongling said. "Such a Magic Skill requires a tremendous amount of effort; it’s impossible for there to be many... The Sword Pavilion being related to everything in Ba Shu mostly pertains to the regular interactions for Swordsmanship, with the Wordless Sword Slaves simply blending in unnoticed. In truth, there likely aren’t more than a handful of them... This might also be why Wuding has always been unable to break through his bottleneck."

Zhao Changhe nodded slightly, finding this analysis sensible.

According to such a Magic Skill, if it could be spread amongst the thousands, that would be powerful indeed. It would not only pertain to the Third Layer Secret Treasure, but might as well solve the so-called ’Dominion’ state—logically, this should be a tactic only feasible at the ’Dominion’ level. Wuding’s cultivation is far too forced to use this; having a handful is already difficult enough.

But with such a small number, how could they expect to achieve a breakthrough? The Sword Intent they command might not even be as abundant as what Zhao Changhe has gained from the Heavenly Book, and he himself can’t even touch the fringe of the Second Layer Secret Treasure. It would be a joke for Wuding to rely on these few to breach the Third Layer Secret Treasure...

Perhaps even normal cultivation would have broken through, and the vast expenditure of energy here might actually prevent a breakthrough...

That could explain why things are getting increasingly aggressive, opting for a combination with the Gu Technique of the Miao Region to control existing masters to serve as Sword Slaves...

Zhao Changhe mused, "Looking at it this way, it’s very likely that the Sword Array lacks manpower, and knowing that Wubing has arrived in Ba Shu, they want Wubing to fill that gap... There must be something wrong with the Sword Array, and normally Wubing would never agree, he must be coerced... Now, we don’t know how this is supposed to be accomplished, whether it requires face-to-face interaction or if it can happen from a distance..."

Yue Hongling looked up at him and said, "Even if it can be done from a distance, it must be within a certain range; otherwise, there’d be no need to lure Han Wubing here... He probably hasn’t arrived yet; you must immediately block him, there might still be time."

"And you...?"

"This Sword Array is affecting the weather, making both of us uneasy. It’s no trivial matter. I’m worried that even without Han Wubing, it could still be forcibly activated; I must keep watch. So, let’s split our forces... You go intercept Han Wubing, which might involve Wuding leaving the Sword Array to find you, and I’ll lie in wait here to attempt to destroy the Sword Array."

"Alright. Be careful."

"You too, be careful."

With no superfluous words exchanged between the couple, they decided on their tasks, and Zhao Changhe swiftly departed from the mountain.

...

In the darkness of night, Han Wubing advanced slowly, gazing at the distant mountains, faintly discernible through the shadows.

His path did not intersect with Zhao Changhe’s; he had traveled directly from Ba Shu to this area, moving from north to south. Zhao Changhe, arriving from Dali, was approaching from the southeast. Their paths did not cross.

His master had invited him to settle their scores and to meet at the new sect headquarters, also "to let the wanderer recognize the door." This human warmth, rarely heard in the austere and frigid atmosphere of a Swordsman sect, touched Han Wubing in an inexplicable way.

Deep down, he harbored admiration for his master, as though a voice was telling him, what grudges could he possibly have with his sect that couldn’t be resolved? Go, talk to your master... With his rank in the thirties on the Human List, he had earned the right to speak with his master upon his triumphant return.

Unaware that he was nothing but a Sword Slave, groomed from childhood... but he knew something was amiss with the sect; he had known long before.

The Sword Pavilion in Ba Mountain lacked any enterprise—where did they get the funds to support a sect?

Yet it seemed that his master had an endless supply of money, and many of his senior fellow disciples were also wealthy, inexplicably so.

Although his senior fellow disciples often traveled the Worldly Society, quite a few of them never returned, having died abroad. Yet, it was commonly said that disciples from the Sword Pavilion seldom ventured out.

There was no other reason; being in the Sword Pavilion, it was actually quite simple to discover the inside story. Soon enough, one of his senior fellow disciples hinted at it, asking him if he wanted to share the bounty.

Han Wubing thought it was about Bounty Hunters and joined in a few times before realizing that they were not Bounty Hunters, but Assassins.

Ba Mountain Sword House was merely the public face of Tingxue Tower; the main source of income for the Sword Pavilion was assassination. Tingxue Tower even employed non-core Assassins, recruited from various places in Ba Shu, thus Practitioners were of various disciplines. But the true core Assassins were all disciples of the Sword Pavilion.

Han Wubing found this unacceptable... Bounty Hunters and Assassins might sound similar, but they were worlds apart, at opposite ends of the spectrum. So he no longer participated, and his relationship with the sect grew progressively strained.

By the lakeside of Sword Lake, his fellow disciples’ struggle for the sword and resulting fratricide were merely the catalyst for their falling out. The seeds of their rupture had been planted long before... Of course, he didn’t know this was a path laid out by his master, tailored to his character, and his unique choices had in fact delighted Wuding.

From start to finish, it was all just an act with real people.

Zhao Changhe knew earlier on that the Sword Pavilion had accepted the bounty to kill him, but those were just peripheral assassins disguised as beggars or servants. No real disciples of the Sword Pavilion had taken part, so Han Wubing didn’t feel this matter was related to him. However, upon discovering that Ying Shuang was looking for Zhao Changhe, Han Wubing could no longer sit still.

What the fuck, had ghosts come to play? Previously, the forces offering a bounty for Zhao Changhe’s assassination had basically reconciled with him. Even the Imperial official who issued the wanted order had already kissed and made up with him, and the Blood God Sect who posted the bounty had knelt and called him "Saint Heir."

So who the hell was still offering the bounty now?

It didn’t matter who was offering the bounty. Ying Shuang was his senior brother, with cultivation ranked in the thirties on the Human List. Zhao Changhe wouldn’t be able to withstand him.

So he pursued him over a thousand miles, blocking his senior brother at the Sword Pavilion.

Gazing at the snow mountain ahead, Han Wubing suddenly wondered, could this finally be living up to the name of the Sword Pavilion?

The past is the past... Now that master wants to reconcile, then let’s have a talk. We people born for the sword, why have we become Demons Lords of the night? This shouldn’t be so.

While thinking, he stepped into the range of the snow mountain.

The moment he set foot inside, Han Wubing’s expression changed subtly, and he was about to retreat.

He felt that he had entered a peculiar domain, his spirit became hazy, his memory fuzzy, thinking sluggish, whispers echoed in his Soul Sea, all his consciousness faded, and only the shadow of his master became more prominent.

Han Wubing was not a rookie at this point. He forcefully suppressed his bewildered spirit and was about to retreat swiftly.

Shadowy figures emerged from behind, suddenly blocking the way with numerous presences.

Han Wubing’s mind hazed again... Why couldn’t his Spiritual Sense detect the existence of these people? Were they all...

Were they all dead?

No, there was one living person... it was Lan Wujiang, an acquaintance of Zhao Changhe who had fought with him during the recent sword competition among the tribes.

"You truly live up to the name ’Wubing’," Lan Wujiang’s expression, even grislier than on that day, was as pale as a zombie’s face but seemed to still be conscious, able to converse: "You actually realized it at the first moment and attempted to withdraw... but since you’re here, don’t go back... Isn’t the Sword Pavilion good?"

Han Wubing could hardly hear the words in front, only the last few words echoed repeatedly in his heart.

Isn’t the Sword Pavilion good? Isn’t the Sword Pavilion good?

Struggling, he clutched his head and gasped, "What is... going on..."

"There’s nothing... the wanderer away from home always needs to return... All swords return to the sect, it is nothing beyond that." Lan Wujiang’s face was expressionless, as if stating something as natural as the heavens and earth: "The sect master is very pleased with the rapid progress of your cultivation. With someone of your caliber arriving, the last piece of the puzzle fits into place."

"Chk!" Before he could finish speaking, Han Wubing suddenly drew his sword, attempting to force his way out.

But strangely enough, though it seemed sharp, his sword strikes felt like child’s play against Lan Wujiang and were effortlessly deflected.

Several expressionless Sword Slaves surged forward, grasping Han Wubing and leading him up the mountain.

Han Wubing’s head spun again, finding himself without the strength to struggle, his eyelids battling to stay open. What was more bizarre, his desire was still to climb the mountain... Why did he still want to go up the mountain?

Was this some Gu Technique at work? Or some kind of curse?

Han Wubing protected his Spirit Platform and swiftly looked inward, but for the moment couldn’t find the source of the problem.

Could it really be as the people of the Central Plains say, that one should never lightly tread into the Miao Region, unwittingly falling into a trap without knowing why...

Such unwillingness... Just to see master again out of sentimental attachment... Could it really be as they say, that all human emotions are mistakes, obstacles on the path of the Sword Dao?

At that moment, a burst of blood light exploded in the sky.

Under the moonlight, a blood-colored figure leapt down from the mountain, holding a huge Broadsword, and descended like a blanket over the heavens: "All of you fuck off!"

Lan Wujiang looked up in shock, the full moon atop the mountain, the person’s figure as if emerging from the moon, features unclear, only the bright red eyes like a God Demon looking down.

Han Wubing, nearly unconscious, cracked a slight smile.

Who said they are all obstacles? There are always some things, stubbornly proving themselves to the world.

————

PS: Begging for monthly tickets, boo hoo hoo, my behind is going to be punctured, I’d rather be punctured by you guys than them~