Upon the Jise Peak of Forsaken Mountain, a slumbering soul stirred from his repose. With familiar ease, he plucked a toothpick from a bamboo tube upon the table, setting it between his teeth. He stepped beyond his door to find the heavens ablaze with light, the sun already a radiant jewel in the sky.

In the courtyard, a small company awaited him. There was Zheng Dafeng and Wen Zixi, instructors of pugilism at Leaping Fish Mountain, along with a youthful Daoist, a wooden hairpin adorning his hair, and a somber, blue-clad page. All waited for Zhong Qian.

Zhong Qian’s gaze swept over them before he moved, taking the lead. A silent, singular air clung to this Golden Body realm warrior, one that spoke volumes: *Follow the Big Brother*.

Wen Zixi and the rest, those who shared his table and trusted his judgment, silently trailed their imposing leader. With measured steps and a heart at peace, they marched toward the old cook’s kitchen. Today, they would feast, leaving no soldier unconsumed in bowl or platter!

For those who entered Forsaken Mountain, three meals a day were assured. But Zhong Qian’s venerated standing stemmed from his prowess in securing a nightly supper for all.

Their company swelled as they walked. Little Millet and the White-Haired Child, fresh from their mountain patrol, brought up the rear. Nuan Shu, whose dawn was spent sweeping the courtyards, joined them as well.

Chen Lingjun, voice hushed, inquired of the registrar: “Those blinding swords of light, they’ve taken residence at Sword Worship Terrace. What’s the tale? Are they folk of great power? I’d fain see if I can discern their nature.”

The White-Haired Child replied, “They seem to be sword immortals from the Great Wall of Sword Qi. Once companions to Old Sword Immortal Qi, now they serve our Mountain Lord.”

Chen Lingjun nodded in understanding. “Ah, then they are kin. Since the Mountain Lord is absent, I shall extend to them a proper welcome after breakfast.”

A throng of sword immortals, recently attendees of the Great Li Dynasty’s celebrations, now found temporary lodging at Sword Worship Terrace.

Due to the celestial anomalies that had seized the capital of Great Li, Xie Gou, Xiao Mo, and Ning Yao had all retraced their steps.

Having learned that Chen Ping’an had ascended, the young Hidden Officer would yet traverse two worlds. They were hesitant to journey directly to Forsaken Mountain.

To admire the vistas of Azure Clarity, the landscape of Jade Capital? An unexpected bounty, this was a stroke of fortune to befall them after the Great Li ceremonies!

Gao Shuang and others of his ilk, ever eager for spectacle, yearned to accompany the Hidden Officer on his sojourn to Azure Clarity. Would their revelry turn them into the spectacle itself? Fear? Such a word held no place in the lexicon of the Sword Qi Great Wall’s swordsmen. They knew life and death, victory and defeat, honor and shame, but fear and timidity were strangers to them.

Even Mei Dangdang, a native of the savage wastes, radiated vigor. Seldom, if ever, had a demon from the desolate wilds dared set foot in Azure Clarity, to approach the Jade Capital that pierced the center of the heavens. Could he claim this singular distinction?

It wasn’t just Lu Zhi whose eyes glittered at the prospect. Even the shrewd Qi Tingji considered a spontaneous journey.

But Xie Gou intervened, halting Xiao Mo and Ning Yao. Ning Yao, in turn, persuaded the rest of the sword immortals to reconsider.

Qi Tingji’s concerns were more far-reaching. Were Ning Yao and Xiao Mo, both Fourteenth Realm swordsmen, to accompany them, they would surely join battle, without even seeking Chen Ping’an’s counsel. Such an act would irrevocably shatter the facade, pitting Forsaken Mountain and the entire Great Li Dynasty against the Jade Capital. The choice of the Ascending City in the Five Colors World would become clear. Should the swordsmen of the Ascending City attack first, the forces of Jade Capital in the Five Colors World would find themselves besieged by the elite Daoist sects, their path to retreat to the Azure Clarity cut off, and their fate sealed. Were they to be given passage back to the Azure Clarity, what use would those Taoist titles of the mountains?

Chen Ping’an had presented the Jade Capital with an impossible question: Could they tolerate such a slight? If not, there was no point in posturing, for a battle would be joined.

Qi Tingji spoke telepathically to Ning Yao in the capital, “If the Jade Capital does strike, then it is simple. Lead the charge with Xiao Mo, we will follow, and lay waste to the Jade Capital!”

“However, should the Hidden Officer and Xie Gou return unharmed, remind them to be wary of the Jade Capital’s moles. Jiang and Pang are not men to suffer defeat with resignation. Perhaps during the shattering of Li Zhu Paradise, they planted seeds in the Jewel Bottle Continent. I have long suspected Huang Zhen’s ascent was orchestrated. The emergence of that Yin-Yang fish descendant, falling into Huang Zhen’s hands…such good fortune can never be accidental!”

“Before I journey to the savage wastes, let us meet in secret, see if we can unearth any hidden traps. Even if we find nothing, we must prepare ourselves.”

Wandering the streets of Great Li’s capital, Ning Yao heard Qi Tingji’s words and immediately agreed.

The Sword Worship Terrace was comprised of simple thatched huts. The private swordsmen, upon their arrival at Forsaken Mountain, had feared that the training grounds might be too grand, too ethereal, filled with jade towers and sumptuous garments, eclipsing even human kings. They worried the children would forget their homes, their values replaced by a lust for worldly goods. But seeing the reality before them, simple huts, bamboo chairs beneath the eaves, a weathered pine log serving as a bench, and a stone table in the open space… They felt a pang of compassion.

These elders hailed from a place where the sun blazed ten thousand feet above the city walls, where clouds stretched out like an endless sea.

Here, the sun warmed the earth, a babbling stream whispered nearby, and thatched huts nestled amidst green hills and white clouds.

After a time, they found it wasn’t so bad after all.

Then, they beheld a child clutching a purple clay teapot, standing by the stone table, staring directly at them.

The child rubbed his eyes, scarcely believing his sight. Qi Tingji and Lu Zhi were here?

With the addition of Old Deaf, who now instructed at Leaping Fish Mountain, three of the Ten Sword Immortals of their city were gathered here!

Zhu Su asked, “What is your name, little one?”

The child, undaunted, tilted his head back, took a sip of tea, and said, “Bai Xuan, white as in snow, Xuan as in mystery. And yours, fair sister?”

Zhu Su smiled. “Bamboo of the bamboo forest, simple as plain cloth. I am Zhu Su.”

Bai Xuan asked a question that struck a nerve. “What relation are you to that rebel, Zhu An?”

Zhu Su replied, “A kinswoman.”

Bai Xuan nodded knowingly. “Family misfortune.”

Zhu Su was taken aback.

Gao Shuang and a few of the other swordsmen nearly burst into laughter. They felt this Bai Xuan was cut from the same cloth as themselves, lonely warriors.

Zhu Su, unperturbed, asked, “Whom have you taken as your master here?”

Bai Xuan answered, “I already have a master. None here have the fate to be my mentor. Mi Xiu Hua and Cui Pa Si have yearned for the chance, but alas, it is not their destiny.”

Bai Xuan possessed a knack for crafting nicknames, rivaling even the talents of Master Cao.

Mi Yu glared. “Change that moniker for Law-Enforcer Cui!”

Bai Xuan drawled, “Very well, very well. Cui Daredevil, how does that sound?”

Mi Yu seethed. This new nickname was even worse than Cui Coward! It was stabbing Cui Wei in his heart.

The master of Green Willow Sword Sect, Cui Zongzhu, interjected. Bai Xuan immediately spoke, “Everyone has their aspirations, there’s no need to force it. Law-Enforcer Cui now assists Master Cui in the lower sect…ah, I only now realize you share a surname, what a coincidence! It seems Law-Enforcer Cui will have many opportunities to make a name for himself. I believe that one day…”

Cui Dongshan grabbed Bai Xuan by the ear, yanking him upward. Bai Xuan tilted his head, tiptoed, and cried, “Ouch! Master Cui, there are so many people here, give me some face!”

Zhu Su, as she had flown over the western mountains, had taken careful stock of them. In the Great Li palace, she had made way for the Hidden Official, so Zhu Su was still in need of seeking a place to seclude herself. After considering it, it seemed as if there were no halls or palaces, just some lakes. Why not try secluding herself near there?

Zhu Su asked, “What tea is this?”

Bai Xuan said, “Goji berry tea.”

Zhu Su thought she had misheard, “What?”

Bai Xuan rubbed his ears and drew in the air, writing the characters “枸杞” [Gou Qi] (goji berry).

Zhu Su was a sword cultivator, and a woman. She had other ideas, she knew that children’s eyes and aura could not lie.

By the door of a small, thatched hut, there stood a girl with dead fish eyes. She was not good at connecting with people, and didn’t like lively settings. She started to speak but then bit back the words, before she finally couldn’t hold back, and asked Lu Zhi, “Lu Zhi, where’s the Mountain Master’s wife?”

At the Sword Qi Great Wall, names were called directly, it’s an honorific to do so. Sword immortals are more likely to get angry being addressed in any other way.

Lu Zhi smiled. “The Hidden Official ascended in the capital and went to Azure Clarity. Your master was worried, and returned to the capital.”

Ning Yao had entrusted the task of watching over Sun Chun Wang to her at the Dragon Walls of the palace, Lu Zhi had seen this girl and did indeed like her.

Sun Chun Wang shook her head. “The Mountain Master’s wife isn’t my teacher yet. She thinks my talent is a little lacking, my heart is not steadfast, and my understanding of the sword is still too superficial.”

Lu Zhi chuckled. “Being compared to Ning Yao is a fate of doom, why not compete with the Hidden Official in terms of the thickness of their skin.”

Sun Chun Wang said: “Master Cao is not thick-skinned, when he was on that small boat, he’d sit at the stern, facing away from us, and then tear up.”

Lu Zhi was confused. “Master Cao?”

Sun Chun Wang explained: “Master Cao Mo, the Hidden Official’s Jianghu name.”

The sword cultivator liked Sun Chun Wang, she was calm and composed, as if nothing mattered to her. Much like herself.

Lu Zhi joked: “Why not make me your teacher? Ning Yao is going back to the Five Colors World. While my realm isn’t as high as hers, I can promise you that my swordsmanship abilities are not worse.”

Sun Chun Wang shook her head. “You are a seeker of death for carving words. The Mountain Master’s wife seeks to live, she wants to grow strong. I am small and afraid of suffering, so I will learn from Ning Yao. If I take you as my teacher, then my swordsmanship will improve quickly, but I fear I won’t live long. Unless I am not a sword immortal, I will not travel, but I am no good at secluding myself, a sword heart cannot be restrained by the mountains and rivers.”

Lu Zhi was shocked, “Who told you this?”

Sun Chun Wang said, “I thought of it myself, I also read books, because Master Cao always says that the best thing is to spend as little money as possible, read books. I am not interested in making money, but it’s stupid to not take an advantage.”

Lu Zhi nodded, this girl was to her liking. She’d never had the idea of taking on a student, but was every one a potential student?

Sun Chun Wang looked at the strangers, the sword cultivators from her hometown, who were looking around, chattering away. A fire began to rise up.

She heard Chen Lingjun and Bai Xuan chatting about how a group of private swordsmen chose the Dragon Elephant Sword Sect of South Ambosia Island. Bai Xuan was fighting for Master Cao, Chen Lingjun advised against it, and Sun Chun Wang didn’t say anything at the time. Now, they were here, were they here to show Master Cao? Or did they find some loophole and seek to judge Master Cao.

Sun Chun Wang took a step forward, her eyes sharp and cold. “We’re doing great, don’t worry about us, you are guests.”

“We are all reborn in the Sword Qi Great Wall, there’s no other relation. You can trust us to be fine with Master Cao, or not.”

“Master Cao has a good temper, you can say whatever you want, but if you whine about it at Sword Worship Terrace, we will not appreciate it.”

Bai Xuan sucked in a breath, how was it that the girl with dead fish eyes said what was on his mind. Normally, she was silent, but in this moment, she didn’t back down! He stood up, and praised her.

The girl was blushing, were people from her hometown that great? Everyone has a hometown! Master Cao is our family! You aren’t allowed to speak!

Everyone thinks that Master Cao is doing so great by being the final hidden official, and that anything is worth it. How can you? How can you!

You should have visited Master Cao earlier, even just to tell him that he did a good job.

It was Master Cao who took them all on the ship and up the ferry onto the shore.

When they were bored, he would suggest playing chicken. When a man tried to protect the chickens, he would stumble around, but as the wolf, he would always catch someone. Sun Chun Wang hated talking to people, but he’d always create opportunities for them. She would always find it strange how such a man was so caring when he didn’t even have a family.

Sun Chun Wang took a deep breath and cleared her mind, the scene in her mind as clear as a still pond. “From today onwards, cultivate your swords!”

Let us see who is stronger in 100 to 200 years.

Bai Xuan picked up the teapot, “I agree.”

Gao Shuang Jin Zao and the rest of the private swordsmen felt awkward.

Qi Tingji smiled. “My bad.”

Sun Chun Wang snorted.

Cui Dongshan grinned: “Sun Chun Wang, the Elder Sword Immortal’s Dragon Elephant Sword Sect belongs to Forsaken Mountain now, those standing here are all family.”

Sun Chun Wang was stunned, Bai Xuan spat out the tea, and coughed, and Chun Wang regretted her words, going straight back to her house to practice the sword.

The door of the house was not closed, and Bai Xuan was standing by the door. She was looking more beautiful.

Sun Chun Wang was furious: “You pervert.”

Bai Xuan: “I will call you my wife then.”

Cui Dongshan dragged him back, scolding him. “Why do you have to get beaten 100 times?”

The Little White Egret said, “Sun Chun Wang, Bai Xuan likes you. He only picks on you to talk to you.”

Bai Xuan knew that Chun Wang was about to cut him, closing his eyes and acting like he was dead, as if to say, “I am done for.”

Ling Xun exclaimed: “I had no idea the Hidden Official could take care of children.”

Guo Du smiled: “That’s a good thing. We can ask the Hidden Official to be our child’s master.”

Ling Xun blushed slightly, pinching his arm.

Old Deaf knew of Qi Tingji and hurried here, leaving those with only mediocre skills to practice their own qi cultivation.

Bai Xuan and Sun Chun Wang didn’t recognize the Sword Qi Great Wall Immortals, but the Old Deaf did, they knew each other, even if they had never chatted before.

He gave his respects and said semi-fluent words. The swordsmen found it weird, as it seemed that Old Deaf had become a good conversationalist!

Was Forsaken Mountain not only for cultivation, but for also learning how to converse with others!

Gan had grabbed on to some of the tricks, having always said he was ill-suited to the ways of Forsaken Mountain.

Guo Du was impatient to meet with his wife after having not seeing the lady in the mink hat, wondering what was happening at Azure Clarity. She had been requested to pay a visit to Bai Jing.

Ling Xun sensed her partner’s thoughts and asked: “Do you need to see her?”

Guo Du laughed: “I am scared of sword cultivator Bai Jing, but also Xie Gou, why do you ask to be excused. I just want to meet her.”

Ling Xun said: “You don’t know what they’re saying about her, even the people of the savage wastes light incense for her. Before I met you, I met an immortal demon who claimed to have learned a little from Bai Jing and got a broken cultivation technique.”

Guo Du, seeing that she would not go, said: “You should trust the Hidden Official.”

Ling Xun then nodded.

Mei Kan telepathed to him, saying, “Help guard her.”

Mei Dangdang sighed: “What would she need guarding for?”

Mei Kan was even more exasperated, “What an airhead.”