Chapter 22

Yue Qing said to Wu Li, "Let's consider the treasure as something we both obtained together. There are three swords and a jade bottle, so it's perfect for each of us to have one."

Wu Li's expression eased, finding Yue Qing's proposal acceptable. He was not the type to be unreasonable. Initially, he thought Yue Qing would rely on their numbers to monopolize the treasure, which is why he was fully on guard, ready to fight to the death. Now, hearing that Yue Qing was willing to share, it seemed fair and reasonable. After all, Yue Qing had clearly calculated the origin and location of the treasure, arriving here ahead of him. Moreover, among the three, Yue Qinbin alone was a formidable opponent. The long-bearded Taoist behind him seemed to be Ming Yizi, who had once slain a dragon in the East Sea. The young one was also no weakling. If they really fought, he would be at a disadvantage, facing three against one.

Just as he was about to nod in agreement, Yue Qing continued, "I know that you, Daoist friend, had your base at Jinbian Cliff taken by Zhu Aizi years ago, and you have been striving for revenge ever since. Unfortunately, you lack a good sword, which is why you have failed repeatedly. The three flying swords in this treasure are a set called the Three Yang Sword. If used separately, their effectiveness is greatly reduced. If used together, they can match the power of the Emei Purple and Green Swords. Since you, Daoist Wu, were the first to find this place, I will do you a favor. I will give up my sword, and I will also ask Ming Yizi to give up his. Both swords will be yours. What do you think?"

Wu Li was pleasantly surprised, but he also couldn't believe such good fortune. He secretly speculated about Yue Qing's motives: "If it's really like this, I will accept your favor!"

Yue Qing then asked Ming Yizi, who understood the situation. This time, Yue Qing was seeking treasure for his newly admitted junior brother, and he himself was just there for the excitement. He had no share in the treasure. By agreeing to Yue Qing's proposal, Wu Li would owe him a favor, so he nodded and said, "I agree with your proposal. I will give my sword to Daoist Wu."

With the agreement settled, they all flew down into the valley to find the treasure. There was a barrier left by Zhang Mian, which, although weakened over a thousand years, still firmly guarded the valley entrance, preventing anyone from entering.

Wu Li, having received a favor, felt it was inappropriate to take the treasure without effort. He also worried that Yue Qing and his companions might claim the treasure first, so he volunteered, "Let the three of you rest on the side while I break the barrier!"

Wu Li had a quick temper, and his magical treasures were extremely powerful. He raised his hand, and dozens of crystal sands, several meters high, fell heavily onto the barrier at the valley entrance. The tiny, grain-sized, crystal-clear yellow sands bounced and flowed on the invisible barrier, rubbing against each other and forming fist-sized, metallic-glowing thunderballs. Countless thunderballs grew larger in the sand, and upon hitting any obstacle, they exploded immediately!

The rumbling sound, the yellow sand, and the flashing lightning covered the entire valley. Trees that had grown for hundreds of years, as well as rocks and soil, were ground into powder by the crystal sands and shattered by the divine thunder!

Ming Yizi and Liu Quan's faces changed slightly, thinking, "No wonder this old Taoist can match the two elders of Songshan, even if he loses, he still wants revenge. He truly has astonishing abilities. If we had really fought, we would have been in a sorry state!" They also admired Yue Qing's wisdom and magnanimity. It was much better to be friends with such a skilled person than an enemy. The three ancient flying swords left by the immortal, which he could so easily give up, would be hard for others to part with, even if they understood the stakes.

Wu Li used the divine sand to break the barrier, which took over an hour to completely wear down the original owner's barrier. Wu Li's personality was intense and proud, and Yue Qing and his companions did not feel right helping, so they stood on a nearby old pine tree and talked. Yue Qing told Liu Quan, "Now that you have joined our Wutai Sect, I will take you as my disciple on behalf of my master. After this, I will take you to Maoshan to pay respects to our master. You will perform the disciple ceremony at his grave."

Liu Quan was a bit puzzled, "Senior Brother, why is the tomb of our Wutai Sect's founder not in Wutai Mountain but in Maoshan?"

Yue Qing's face turned sad, and he paused for a moment before explaining, "The Maoshan Sect has always been friendly with our Wutai Sect. During the first Emei Sword Duel, my master lost an arm to Qi Shumeng. After returning, he built a hermitage on Maoshan and closed himself off. With the help of the old Taoist, he spent ten years cultivating the Five Poison Immortal Sword. This allowed him to defeat Qi Shumeng during the second Huangshan Sword Duel. Unfortunately, at the last moment, the Three Immortals and Two Elders, especially Zhu Aizi, criticized my master. My master, unable to bear it, fought them, and the Five Poison Sword was taken by the enemy. He was also injured by the Invisible Sword, damaging his spirit. He could not even reincarnate. A few days later, he met his end. Our fellow disciples, fearing that the Emei Sect would come to destroy our base, fled in all directions. Even my uncle, Master Maha, who had taken refuge in Yunmeng Mountain, was in hiding."

Ming Yizi and Liu Quan had heard about the great duels between the two major sects before, but they did not know the details. Liu Quan, now a disciple of the Wutai Sect, felt a deeper sense of enmity towards the Emei Sect after hearing this tragic history.

"After our master's death, Senior Sister Xu announced her reformation and secluded herself in the Five Elders Cliff in Huangshan, closing the mountain gate and refusing to see any of her old disciples, declaring that she would no longer involve herself in the disputes between the two sects. Senior Brother Gu went into seclusion at Dongting Lake, Li Kunwu went into hiding in the mortal world, Lin Yuan and Qian Xiao fled to the mountains in Yunnan, and Junior Brother Long Fei changed his allegiance and joined the White Bone Spirit. The Wutai Sect was in disarray. Master Tuotuo, who had inherited our master's teachings and led the sect, was so angry and distressed that he went into a fit of rage during cultivation and burned himself to ashes. We, the remaining disciples, feared that the Emei Sect would desecrate our master's remains, although it was unlikely, but if the evil sects coveted them and dug them up to make evil magical treasures, it would be disastrous. Fortunately, the old Taoist from Maoshan came to Wutai to mourn and suggested bringing our master's remains to Maoshan for burial. At that time, the Wutai Sect had suffered two major setbacks, and we were all preoccupied, so no one objected."

After Yue Qing finished speaking, the three fell silent for a long time. After a while, Liu Quan said solemnly, "Senior Brother, once we make the Wutai Sect great again, we will bring our master's remains back to Wutai Mountain for a proper burial."

Just as Yue Qing was about to speak, he suddenly saw three sword lights flying from the east, moving extremely fast. In the blink of an eye, they were above the valley, and three beautiful girls stood on the swords. One of them, slightly shorter and dressed in yellow palace attire, pointed down and shouted, "Wu Li, you evil Taoist! We knew you had ill intentions, and sure enough, you are up to no good here!"

Wu Li, who had been frustrated for a long time trying to break the barrier, was even more enraged by the girl's words. "Shameless wench! I am taking my own treasure, what does it have to do with you? You have been provoking me in Laoshan for years, and I have been lenient, not wanting to bully the young. Don't push your luck!"

The girl laughed, "Old Taoist Wu! With your meager cultivation, do you even have the right to talk about bullying the young? Let me tell you, this treasure is left by an immortal from the Han Dynasty for our future sisters. It's not time for it to be unearthed yet. Besides, the treasure has its own will, and it is not destined for you. Even if you break the barrier, you won't get it! Bah! Evil Taoist, do you even deserve to use the ancient immortal's treasure?"

Wu Li, extremely angry, laughed, but his expression was sinister. "You have a choice to go to heaven, but you choose to come to hell. You are asking for it, so don't blame me for being ruthless!" Wu Li flew up, sat cross-legged, and submerged himself in the rolling yellow sand, continuing to use his crystal sand treasure to grind the barrier below. He formed hand seals and released his Yellow Essence Sword. He was determined to take revenge on Zhu Mei but lacked a good sword. Over the years, he had searched the nine provinces and four seas, extracting yellow essence from iron and stone veins to forge many flying swords. He felt that even with these, he could not match Zhu Mei, so he decided to win by numbers, forging a hundred or so to release all at once during a sword duel. However, yellow essence was rare, and it took him several years to forge only fourteen. These were not enough to defeat Zhu Mei, but he was confident they would be enough to deal with these three Emei disciples. With the treasure in front of him, he no longer held back. Fourteen yellow lights rose into the air, blocking all paths around the three girls, and then suddenly converged to stab them, aiming to tear them apart with a flurry of swords!

The three girls were already prepared for a fight and released their own flying swords to engage the Yellow Essence Swords.

Yue Qing did not recognize these three girls and asked Liu Quan, who also did not know. Ming Yizi, standing nearby, said, "These three are disciples of Baiyun, one of the seven immortals of the Luofu Sect of the Emei Sect."

Yue Qing nodded, "No wonder they use the orthodox sword techniques of the Emei Sect."