Volume Two: Snow on the Qin River, Chapter Eight: The Sword Debate of the Peaks (Part II)

Listening to Zhou Zihan’s words and observing those six faint, ethereal sword intents, Feng Qi looked unusually solemn.

It was not just him; even the various Sword Children of the peaks could hardly sit still.

Sheng Yun straightened his posture slightly. Zhang Chen’s eyes flickered. Qiu Yue clicked her tongue in amazement.

Below the stage, there was silence. The Hunyuan-stage disciples could not perceive the sword intent Zhou Zihan spoke of and exchanged confused glances. However, the Huixin-stage disciples could feel the six strands of sword intent swirling around her, and their brows furrowed tightly. Seeing the expressions of their senior brothers and sisters, the Hunyuan disciples realized how astonishing the display was and widened their eyes, hoping to learn something from this battle.

"Six strands of sword intent... is Senior Sister Zihan even human?" Gu Duxing looked at the girl on the stage, feeling a stifling pressure in his chest, as if he could not breathe.

The Gu family of Huainan was considered a great aristocratic clan. When the Divine Dynasty’s ban was lifted, they had used their geographical advantage to send him into the Snow Cloud Sect. Compared to other Hunyuan disciples, his knowledge and vision were far superior.

Mei Hanqing did not know what to say and could only pat him on the shoulder to offer comfort.

The disciples of Qianren Peak looked askance at the disciples of other peaks, thinking that Senior Sister Zihan’s talent had finally crushed their pride into the dust; otherwise, it would have been unfair for only them to suffer such a blow.

At some point, Sheng Yun had left his recliner and stood at the very front.

Zhang Chen said beside him, "What? Worried that your position as the future Sect Master is no longer secure?"

Sheng Yun glanced at him without speaking.

Qiu Yue patted her chest and let out a breath. "Senior Brother, I heard that you also condensed sword intent when you were at the peak of the Hunyuan stage?"

Sheng Yun replied, "Only one strand, not worth mentioning."

Qiu Yue raised an eyebrow and asked again, "After ten years of closed-door cultivation, how many strands do you have now?"

"Cultivating too much sword intent is troublesome; one strand is enough for me," Sheng Yun said lazily. "As for what Junior Brother Zhang Chen is worried about..."

A heavy aura suddenly emanated from his body, and a magnificent star field flickered and vanished in an instant.

Zhang Chen raised his eyebrows.

Qiu Yue blinked. "Starlight entering the body? The initial stage of Brilliance-Induction?"

Sheng Yun yawned and walked back. "No one can take what I want. You cannot do it, and neither can that Innate Formless Sword Body."

Brilliance-Induction stage... this was already beyond the scope of a disciple. In other words, if Sheng Yun wished, he could become an Elder of a peak at any time. No wonder he was so confident.

...

Hearing the girl’s voice, the corners of Feng Qi’s mouth twitched.

Sword intent, blade intent, spear intent, and the like all belonged to "Weapon Intent." Generally, one could only control weapon intent after reaching the Huixin stage. The quantity and intensity of the weapon intent one could command directly reflected the strength of a Huixin-stage master’s weapon perception.

Taking the woman he encountered outside Tongguan as an example, she had just entered the Huixin stage and could only grasp one strand of weapon intent. If Feng Qi had fought with all his might, that woman would not have lasted even a quarter of an hour. He had clashed with two early-stage Huixin experts from Wuhen Peak recently, and even among the geniuses of the Snow Cloud Sect, they could only master three strands of sword intent at the early Huixin stage, and neither the flexibility of their attacks nor the intensity of the intent itself compared to the girl before him.

Feng Qi offered a wry smile and whispered, "We are fellow disciples; is there really a need to go this far?"

Zhou Zihan replied, "If I want to decide the outcome with you, I will not be satisfied with merely defeating a version of you that hasn't given his all."

Feng Qi sighed. "Why are you so insistent on deciding the outcome with me? I don't believe I have offended you in any way."

Zhou Zihan said softly, "Because that is the very meaning of the Sword Discussion."

Feng Qi frowned, thinking that reaching this point was enough to live up to the expectations of his fellow disciples.

"If you concede now, I will look down on you," Zhou Zihan said, raising an eyebrow. "Especially at this moment, you should not concede."

At this moment?

What did she mean?

For Feng Qi, he had just lost his father the King, his mother the Consort, and a vast number of Yanbei citizens.

He would seek revenge; that was beyond doubt.

Would he encounter many powerful enemies on his path of revenge, and therefore he must not concede?

Thinking this, Feng Qi smiled dismissively, feeling a sense of relief.

A pure surge of vital energy emerged from his Dantian and slowly gathered in his right palm.

A loud explosion rang out on the Sword Discussion stage. Feng Qi extended his right palm and struck the tail of the broken sword.

The seventh form of the Overlord Spear: Raging Dragon Tremor!

The stalemate was finally broken. The broken sword knocked aside the four strands of sword intent in front of it and shot toward Zhou Zihan.

Zhou Zihan gave a cold snort, and the six strands of sword intent slashed in from all directions.

A series of crisp clinking sounds echoed from the broken sword, and it was finally shattered into pieces a foot away from Zhou Zihan’s brow.

She looked at Feng Qi. "According to our agreement, draw your sword."

Feng Qi glanced at her, raised his hand, and said calmly, "I concede."

Zhou Zihan was stunned. After realizing what happened, she became indignant and waved her hand, sending the six strands of sword intent flashing toward Feng Qi with lightning speed.

Feng Qi stood where he was, calm and composed. He didn't even attempt to resist or dodge.

To prove he truly had no strength left to fight, he even deactivated his "Back to the Wall" technique.

A flash of sword light passed.

The six strands of sword intent landed on the ground.

The deacon responsible for the judging looked at Feng Qi, then at Zhou Zihan.

"In the semi-finals of the Peak Sword Discussion, Zhou Zihan of Qianren Peak is the winner."

Zhou Zihan looked at Feng Qi, her eyes filled with chilliness.

Feng Qi looked at Zhou Zihan, his eyes filled with fearlessness.

...

"You really conceded?" Mu Linhan looked at Feng Qi.

Feng Qi said helplessly, "Master forbade me from using my full strength. Since I couldn't defeat that girl while holding back, it was better to concede quickly and leave a suave impression."

Mu Linhan could not help but laugh. "So you only care about being 'suave'? Aren't you afraid Master will skin you alive?"

Feng Qi sighed. "What else could I do? Stay on the stage and get beaten until I’m bruised and bloody? Do I look like a fool to you?"

Mu Linhan shook his head. "We cultivators must overcome all hardships on the path of cultivation. We cannot retreat, and we cannot concede; doing so will damage our sword heart."

Feng Qi thought that his words were not nearly as stinging as what Zhou Zihan had just said.

He didn't strike back because he truly couldn't use Qingshuang; after all, the existence of Qingshuang itself was a major trump card.

Mu Linhan was silent for a moment, then spoke again: "However, you have a point. Since the old master placed restrictions on you, there is no need to take a beating for no reason. If it really came to that, it would also be a disgrace to my Wuhen Peak."

Feng Qi agreed deeply.

"Let's go. The following matches aren't worth watching. Since that girl can use six strands of sword intent so flexibly at the peak of Hunyuan, she is basically invincible at this realm."

Mu Linhan thought for a moment and nodded. "True. I thought you and that girl would meet in the finals; who would have guessed you’d collide in the semi-finals? The other person entering the finals is inferior to both her and you, so they will likely be thrashed. There really isn't much to see."

Returning to Wuhen Peak, Feng Qi was immediately summoned to the Wuhen Hall.

He looked at the giant eagle-shaped ice sculpture outside the hall, wondering whether he should go in.

Although his reason for conceding was sufficient, he knew very well that the old man inside was entirely unreasonable. If his stubborn temper flared up, he wouldn't care how many reasons one had.

"Come in. I won't strike you," Xue Wuji’s calm voice suddenly sounded in his ears.

Feng Qi was stunned for a moment, then realized that his master was a great figure of the Void Dao realm—how could he not detect him?

He sighed and walked in nervously, only to find that besides Xue Wuji, there were many other Elders inside the hall. The way they looked at him was like lechers who had just taken aphrodisiacs staring at a naked woman, which made his heart feel uneasy.

Xue Wuji was so amused by his cautious appearance that he laughed, mistakenly thinking Feng Qi was still holding a grudge over the whipping and the month-long confinement he had received earlier. "So, you really think of me as a shrew?"

Feng Qi shook his head with great certainty, thinking to himself that he should have thought of such an apt adjective himself.

Xue Wuji smiled again. "The Elders have some questions for you. Do not hide your skills; just answer truthfully."

When he said "answer truthfully," Xue Wuji blinked very noticeably.

Feng Qi was slightly startled, then understood.

At this moment, an Elder asked, "How did you use the sword to perform 'Back to the Wall'?"

Feng Qi recognized him as the Great Elder of Wuhen Peak, Guan Men.

Feng Qi let out a sigh of relief, thinking that was what it was about. Remembering Xue Wuji’s instructions, he blurted out, "I was confined in my cave dwelling these past few days, and being bored, I tried to modify the way the Overlord Spear operates. I didn't expect it to actually work."

Although he had been mentally prepared, Guan Men was still shocked.

The Overlord Spear was created by the ancestor of the Feng family at the age of twenty and was hailed as the world’s number one spear technique.

He never expected that, hundreds of years later, it would be modified into the "Overlord Sword" by his descendant, who knows how many generations removed.

He didn't dwell on Feng Qi’s reasoning; regardless, Feng Qi was only sixteen. To change the vital energy circulation route of the Overlord Spear in such a short time was already a sign of incredible talent. If he were even younger... that would be even more absurd.

Thinking of this, Guan Men and the other Elders exchanged glances, their eyes burning.

"Peak Master..." Guan Men began, weighing his words.

Xue Wuji interrupted him before he could continue, feigning anger. "Modifying the circulation of vital energy without permission is a very dangerous thing. Do not do it again."

Feng Qi wanted to roll his eyes at his master, but fearing he would give the game away, he refrained.

But he now had plenty of ways to make Xue Wuji uncomfortable, so he shrugged and said, "It wasn't too dangerous; I was confident."

Guan Men’s eyes lit up, and he asked hurriedly, "Confident? How sure?"

Xue Wuji looked at Feng Qi with a dangerous glint in his eyes, thinking that he had indeed been too lenient with his whipping the other day, allowing this brat to undermine him to his face.

Feng Qi didn't care at all about what Xue Wuji was thinking. He thought for a moment and felt that saying "one hundred percent" would be too arrogant, so he took a step back and said, "Ninety percent."

"Arrogant!" Xue Wuji frowned, displeased. "The Overlord Spear was created by the ancestor of the Feng family and refined by generations of masters to earn the title of the world's number one spear. You, a wet-behind-the-ears youth, how dare you utter such wild words!"

Guan Men frowned. "Young people should naturally have sharp edges. I have observed that Feng Qi is quite cautious in his actions. Since he says he is ninety percent sure, it cannot be false. Just because you, the Hall Master, cannot do it, does not mean others cannot."

The other Elders hurriedly echoed this, their words earnest, appearing as if they wanted to put Xue Wuji in opposition to Feng Qi.

Xue Wuji wanted to spit on these old fools, thinking, *Aren't you all just wanting to take Feng Qi as your disciple? Is it necessary to demean my Wuhen Peak? Making it seem as if there are no good seedlings among the hundreds of disciples in my Wuhen Peak.*

Thinking was one thing, but Feng Qi was his closing disciple whom he had raised since childhood; he would certainly not let Guan Men and the others snatch him away. He said, "The Elders make a reasonable point, but this brat, Feng Qi, has been my disciple since he was young. In the blink of an eye, ten years have passed. I am just protective of my disciple."

Guan Men waved his hand. "Peak Master, what are you saying? The Sword Discussion is not yet over, and the disciples of the various peaks have not yet formally chosen their masters. How is Feng Qi already your disciple? In my opinion, his sword style matches mine; if anyone is to take him, it should be me."

The other Elders were not willing to be left behind and jumped in, one after another. For a time, the hall was filled with noise and was quite lively.

Xue Wuji did not look at them directly.

Feeling a bit awkward, they took a step back and said, "How about this: tomorrow begins the Huixin-stage Sword Discussion, and after that, the master-choosing proceedings will follow. Can we let Feng Qi choose for himself then?"

Xue Wuji continued to ignore them.

Feng Qi felt that Guan Men’s words made some sense and nodded like a chick pecking at rice.

Seeing this, the other Elders felt even more certain about their poaching efforts.

Then they heard Xue Wuji say, "Fellow Elders, I'm afraid that won't work."

Guan Men was slightly startled and asked, "Why not?"

Xue Wuji sighed. "I was eager to nurture talent, and this kid wasn't very settled, so I let him use the 'Treading Snow Sword' for two years after he reached Hunyuan. My sword intent still lingers in his Dantian. If he changes his master, it might cause problems. I understand your feelings, and if it weren't for this connection, I would have gladly let you have him, but..."

"Xue Wuji!" Hearing Xue Wuji’s words, Guan Men’s face turned increasingly ugly, and he shouted sharply.

Perhaps due to his overwhelming anger, he didn't even call him Peak Master.

Xue Wuji knew he was in the wrong and did not argue, showing a troubled expression. "There is nothing I can do. You don't know—in just ten years, this kid has ventured into the wilderness six times, facing life-and-death situations... This was just a stopgap measure."

...

Guan Men left with a dark face. Although the other Elders did not look as angry, they wore expressions as if they had just swallowed a dead child.

Xue Wuji looked at Feng Qi and made a sound.

Then another.

Feng Qi looked at Xue Wuji and sighed, "I was wondering why Master gave me the Wuhen Peak Master’s sword; so it was for this reason."

Xue Wuji was completely unimpressed by Feng Qi’s act. "You weren't so capable during the Sword Discussion! Conceding? Aren't you ashamed?"

Feng Qi spread his hands. "A master's orders are hard to disobey; I had no choice."

Xue Wuji made a sound and asked, "Did I tell you to concede?"

Feng Qi said seriously, "You didn't say it, but that is what you did."

Xue Wuji was amused to the point of anger. "Forget it. I really have no reason to blame you for this."

Feng Qi showed a triumphant smile. "Then I will take my leave, Master."

Xue Wuji nodded and reminded him, "Tomorrow is the Huixin-stage Sword Discussion. Remember to go watch; it will be good for you."

Feng Qi raised an eyebrow and asked, "Isn't Senior Brother appearing in a few days?"

Xue Wuji said, "The heads of the various peaks do indeed appear last."

Feng Qi wore an expression that said it was only natural. "Then I will go watch in a few days."

Xue Wuji’s gaze turned dangerous. "I haven't settled the score with you for what happened earlier! And now you dare to negotiate with me?"

Feng Qi shuddered and quickly replied, "Disciple obeys! I guarantee I won't miss a single one of the senior brothers' battles!"