Chapter 66

This place is not far from the Sword Sect, after all, it is within the Wind Sword Sect. Although the nine sub-sects are separated from each other, they are not too far apart.

Soon, Lu Xuan saw an extremely grand stone sword, which was dozens of zhang long, slantedly inserted into a mountain peak. Although it looked very casual, Lu Xuan felt a mysterious sword path contained within it, generating a sense of awe that was hard to describe.

"Did you see that giant sword?" Elder Xu's voice sounded beside Lu Xuan. Lu Xuan hurriedly bowed, and Elder Xu waved his hand, indicating it was unnecessary.

"This place is the main peak of our Sword Sect, called the Falling Sword Peak. In the past, it was even the main peak of the entire Wind Sword Sect. That stone sword was carved by the first sect master of the Wind Sword Sect. It is said that the old sect master carved all his life's insights onto this stone sword. Unfortunately, his successors were incapable and failed to gain any insights from it. Now, we can't even maintain the status of the Sword Sect."

Elder Xu's voice was somewhat melancholic. Although he seemed to take Elder Zheng's ridicule of the Sword Sect lightly, how could he not feel bad inside?

Lu Xuan wanted to comfort him but didn't know how to start. He himself was just endowed with talent, and he would only have the right to speak when he could fully demonstrate his talent. So, he could only remain silent for the moment.

The giant sword soon landed on a square. Lu Xuan looked around and saw that there were many martial artists densely standing there, possibly no less than a thousand!

"This is the Sword Sect's square. The people you see are all new disciples recruited from the three empires this time. It seems that the Blade Sect not only targeted you but also snatched disciples from other places. Normally, the number would not be so few," Elder Xu explained.

As the giant sword stopped, the disciples jumped down, and Elder Xu led them to stand on the square.

"Lu Xuan, Xia Ye, Lin Xinyi, you three follow me. The rest of the disciples, wait here for further instructions," Elder Xu said.

Lu Xuan, Xia Ye, and Lin Xinyi were the three inner disciples who entered the Sword Sect from Lincheng this time. Originally, there were two more inner disciples, but they changed their choice after being swayed by Elder Zheng and went to the Blade Sect.

The three of them followed Elder Xu, and soon, Lu Xuan saw a grand hall. On the lintel of the hall, there was a plaque with a large "Sword" character. The character was perfectly round and complete, with the final stroke being very decisive, containing a strong sword intent that seemed to pierce the sky, making it impossible for ordinary people to look directly at it.

"This is our Sword Sect's meeting hall, called the Sword Pavilion. The 'Sword' character was personally written by the old sect master," Elder Xu explained casually. "The new disciples and a few elders are probably already inside. Let's go in."

The three of them followed Elder Xu into the Sword Pavilion. Indeed, there were already many people inside, though not as many as on the square, there were nearly a hundred.

Elder Xu led Lu Xuan and the others directly to the front.

"Old Cheng, Old Lin, I have brought the disciples from Lincheng back," Elder Xu said to two people dressed as elders.

Lu Xuan thought to himself that Elder Xu had mentioned he was one of the three elders of the Sword Sect, so these two must be the other two elders.

One of the elders in a gray robe glanced at Lu Xuan and the others and immediately said with a bitter smile, "Only three? It seems you were also provoked by the Blade Sect?"

Elder Xu's face darkened slightly, and he nodded, "The people of the Blade Sect are getting more and more arrogant. This time, the disciples I brought back from Lincheng were taken away by them in large numbers."

The gray-robed elder sighed, "It's the same in other places. Including the three disciples you brought, only ninety-eight inner disciples entered the Sword Sect this time, less than a third of previous years."

Elder Xu laughed coldly, "No matter. Those who change sides, let them go. It's better to save resources and focus on cultivating the remaining disciples."

Saying this, Elder Xu seemed to remember something, and the coldness on his face disappeared. He smiled slightly and said, "This time in Lincheng, I found a very talented seed. In the next sect competition, our Sword Sect will surely gain fame! Lu Xuan, come here, let me introduce you to the other two elders of our Sword Sect."

Hearing this, Lu Xuan hurriedly stepped forward and stood beside Elder Xu.

Elder Xu pointed to the gray-robed elder and said, "This is Elder Cheng, the chief elder of our Sword Sect. His strength has reached the middle stage of the Spirit Refinement realm. In terms of strength, he is slightly stronger than your Uncle Yan Jiu."

"Disciple Lu Xuan, I pay my respects to the chief elder," Lu Xuan bowed respectfully.

At this moment, another elder in a white robe also walked over and said with interest, "Yan Jiu? Could it be the Yan Jiu from the Fist Sect? That would make you a relative of an old friend."

Elder Xu laughed heartily, "Yes, that Yan Jiu."

He then said to Lu Xuan, "This is Elder Lin, the second elder of our Sword Sect. As for me, I am the third elder."

Facing Elder Lin, Lu Xuan naturally bowed again.

Elder Lin waved his hand and said, "No need for formalities. I was also acquainted with Yan Jiu in the past. However, Yan Jiu excels in claw techniques. Why didn't you learn from him and instead chose to study the sword?"

"I am not Uncle Jiu's relative. I only received some favors from him and did not learn from him," Lu Xuan explained.

"Lu Xuan is a very talented seed that I discovered. If he were to go to another sub-sect, I would be the first to disagree," Elder Xu said with a proud smile, clearly very pleased with recruiting Lu Xuan.

"Oh?"

"In the four rounds of the examination, Lu Xuan won the first place in all four rounds. In the final practical test, he successfully climbed to the sixth level of the Sword Tower with the strength of the fourth level of Body Refinement and killed three martial artists," Elder Xu said with a smile.

Upon hearing this, Elder Lin couldn't help but be surprised. Climbing to the sixth level of the Sword Tower with the fourth level of Body Refinement was already difficult, and killing three martial artists of the sixth level of Body Refinement in a siege was even more challenging.

Elder Lin then nodded and smiled, "Indeed, that's impressive. It seems that although the number of disciples we recruited this time is small, their quality is good. I also encountered a very talented disciple in the Beacon Fire Empire, Xing Feng, come here."

Hearing Elder Lin's call, a young martial artist immediately stepped forward and stood beside Elder Lin.

"Xing Feng is a disciple from the Beacon Fire Empire. He also won the first place in all four rounds of the examination, reaching the fifth level of Body Refinement at the age of seventeen. His record is climbing to the sixth level of the Sword Tower and killing five martial artists," Elder Lin introduced. "Xing Feng, you and Lu Xuan are both new disciples of this year, both with excellent talent. You should support each other and strive to bring glory to our Sword Sect in the next sect competition!"

Lu Xuan looked over, and to his surprise, Xing Feng was also looking at him. Their eyes met, and Xing Feng's eyes revealed a strong fighting spirit, as if he was eager to challenge him.