82: Chapter 82 Where are the people from the Purple Mansion Sword Pavilion?

Cangling Mountain Range, outside the light gate of the Tianyuan Ancient Realm.

Three Elders of the Daoxuan Immortal Sect in the Celestial Phenomenon Realm had been sitting cross-legged for three months, and at this moment, they all opened their eyes in unison.

The bronze light gate hummed, and the runes on its surface began to flow in reverse.

"It is about to open."

The leading white-robed Elder, Zhou Hongdao, stood up and dusted off his knees.

He turned his head to look at the left and right flanks.

On the side of the Zifu Sword Pavilion, three leading Elders in the Celestial Phenomenon Realm were also staring intently at the light gate.

On the side of the Xuanhuang Immortal Mansion, the leading white-robed old man holding a book scroll was resting with his eyes closed, looking calm and composed.

The reception personnel from various second-rate Sects were also packed densely on both sides of the canyon, waiting expectantly.

"Boom—"

A burst of golden light suddenly flashed from the light gate.

The first figure rushed out.

Gu Changsheng stepped on dark golden light and walked out of the light gate with ease.

Yousheng followed closely behind; the three-meter-long Vicious Beast landed, creating a pit, its fangs exposed, and its black-green mane standing on end.

Zhou Hongdao's pupils constricted sharply.

"This aura... Peak of the Wufa Realm?"

When he entered three months ago, Gu Changsheng was in the Middle Stage of the Wufa Realm.

In three months, he had crossed several minor Realms.

"Your Highness, Saint!" Zhou Hongdao hurried forward and cupped his hands in a salute.

Gu Changsheng waved his hand.

Following that, Song Yun led a large group of Daoxuan Disciples out in a continuous stream.

The aura on each person was much thicker than before they entered.

Their Storage Pouches were bulging, and they made clinking and clanging sounds as they walked.

Zhou Hongdao quickly counted the number of people.

"One hundred..."

He counted twice.

"Only three lost?"

Song Yun patted his chest and grinned, saying, "Elder Zhou, not only did we not lose many people, but we also hauled back a huge pile of loot!"

He leaned into Zhou Hongdao's ear and lowered his voice.

"Spirit Medicine, mineral veins, ancient fragments... His Highness, the Saint, even hunted a great demon at the half-step Heavenly Phenomenon stage."

Zhou Hongdao gasped.

He turned to look at Gu Changsheng, who was looking down and teasing Yousheng, appearing completely idle.

"The Saint is mighty!" Zhou Hongdao bowed deeply to Gu Changsheng.

After another half a cup of tea's time, the light gate lit up again.

White mist surged out from inside the gate.

Chief Disciple walked out.

He was still holding the bamboo scroll in his hand, but his expression was so dark that water could be wrung from it.

The old man with the whisk went up to greet him, intending to offer congratulations, but noticed that his own Chief Disciple's expression was wrong.

"Qianji, what's wrong?"

Chief Disciple did not answer.

He tucked the bamboo scroll back into his sleeve and raised his eyes to scan the direction of the Daoxuan Immortal Sect.

His gaze swept over Gu Changsheng's back, paused for two breaths, and then withdrew.

"We will talk after we return."

Chief Disciple spat out four words.

The old man with the whisk did not ask any further and turned to check the cultivation progress of the Disciples one by one.

The more he looked, the happier he became.

"Incredible! This Secret Realm truly lives up to its reputation; each of your cultivation levels has improved by at least two years of power!"

"The Immortal Mansion's ten-thousand-year foundation has gained another asset!"

The old man with the whisk smiled and patted the shoulder of the Disciple beside him, the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes smoothing out.

"Hum—"

As time passed, the light on the bronze gate surface grew dimmer and dimmer, and some people came out one after another.

But everyone's gaze suddenly turned in unison toward the direction of the Zifu Sword Pavilion.

The three leading Elders of the Zifu Sword Pavilion stood in front of the light gate, their expressions changing from anxiety to panic.

"What is going on?"

One of the black-robed Elders stood up abruptly, staring fixedly at the light gate that was about to close.

"Where are the people? One hundred and fifty people, and not a single one came out!"

Seeing that the gate of the Tianyuan Ancient Realm was about to close, yet not a single Zifu Sword Pavilion Disciple had appeared!

The canyon was silent for two breaths.

Then, buzzing sounds of discussion spread.

"Where are the people from the Zifu Sword Pavilion?"

"None of them came out? One hundred and fifty people?"

"They wouldn't have all died inside, would they..."

"Hiss—that was one hundred and fifty elite Sword Cultivators, plus that half-step Heavenly Phenomenon Elder Wei Tong and the current Sword Child Jian Wushuang leading them!"

"Could they have encountered an ancient Vicious Beast?"

People from the second-rate Sects gathered in small groups, whispering to each other.

Some gloated, while others showed fear.

The black-robed Elder's knees went weak, and he almost collapsed.

One hundred and fifty Disciples.

Plus the Sword Child Jian Wushuang, and the half-step Heavenly Phenomenon Elder Wei Tong.

These were the elites that the Zifu Sword Pavilion had poured all its efforts into sending in.

They accounted for seventy percent of the entire younger generation.

If they were all gone, the Zifu Sword Pavilion would have suffered a devastating loss!

"Heh."

A loud laugh came from the direction of the Xuanhuang Immortal Mansion.

The white-bearded old man put away his previous kind expression and stroked his beard as he paced forward.

He tilted his head to look at the Zifu Sword Pavilion's black-robed Elder, Xu Henian.

"Old man Xu, where are your precious darlings?"

The white-bearded old man's voice spread throughout the entire area.

"Over one hundred and forty elite Disciples, plus a half-step Heavenly Phenomenon Realm Elder and the Sword Child, went in for three months, and not even a hair is left?"

Xu Henian turned his head abruptly, his eyes bursting with murderous intent.

"Zhou Baichuan! Stop fanning the flames here!"

Zhou Baichuan—Elder of the Xuanhuang Immortal Mansion's Protectorate, and also the leading guardian this time, in the Late Stage of the Celestial Phenomenon Realm.

Zhou Baichuan sneered and clasped his hands behind his back.

"What wind am I fanning? Whether the people from your Zifu Sword Pavilion are dead or alive, what does that have to do with me?"

He paused, his voice rising by two notches.

"I just feel sorry for you! So many good seedlings; the Zifu's foundation for the next hundred years has all been poured in."

"Shut up!" Xu Henian flicked his whisk, and a purple Sword Qi cleaved through the air, heading straight for Zhou Baichuan's face.

Zhou Baichuan waved his sleeve, and a white light swatted the Sword Qi away.

"Yo, getting anxious?" Zhou Baichuan laughed loudly.

"Hit me? Since when has your Zifu Sword Pavilion ever been able to beat my Xuanhuang Immortal Mansion?"

"You—!"

The veins on Xu Henian's forehead bulged, but he was held back by another Elder beside him.

"Senior Brother Xu! You cannot fight here!"

Zhou Baichuan did not continue to press the issue, stepping back two paces and shaking his head with a sigh.

"Forget it, forget it. For the sake of an old acquaintance, I will not hold it against you."

As soon as the word "old acquaintance" was spoken, Xu Henian's expression became even worse than before.

Many of the older Cultivators present exchanged glances, all revealing meaningful expressions.

Who in the entire Eastern Wasteland cultivation world does not know about the feud between the Zifu Sword Pavilion and the Xuanhuang Immortal Mansion?

The territories of the two Holy Lands bordered each other, and their Spiritual Veins were intertwined.

Ownership of mining areas, distribution of Secret Realms, and the division of peripheral forces were issues that caused trouble several times every year.

Relying on the strength of their Dao of the Sword, the Zifu Sword Pavilion had always acted arrogantly.

If it were any other Sect, they would have long since shrunk back and admitted defeat.

But the Xuanhuang Immortal Mansion did not buy it.

If Zifu attacked, Xuanhuang would strike back.

Fights between Disciples were a common occurrence, with them scrapping in the border areas every few days.

But if it were just a territorial dispute, it would not have reached the point of being so irreconcilable.

The real root of the disaster was buried eight thousand years ago.

Back then, the Xuanhuang Immortal Mansion had a brilliant and talented scholar named Shen Shubai.

This man was refined and elegant, and he had cultivated his Hao-Ran righteous Qi to a level that no one among his peers could match.

The Zifu Sword Pavilion also produced a Genius female Disciple named Chu Jiange.

Her temper was as fierce as a powder keg, and she never beat around the bush in her speech or actions.

The two met during a trial in a Secret Realm, moving from disliking each other to developing secret feelings.

Shen Shubai wrote three hundred poems, every one of them written for Chu Jiange.

Chu Jiange did not understand poetry; she only knew the sword.

She carved all three hundred poems onto her own sword.

During the years when the two Holy Lands were fighting the most fiercely, these two would secretly meet at the border.

Everyone in Zifu thought Chu Jiange was in seclusion, and Xuanhuang thought Shen Shubai was traveling far and wide.

Later, the matter was exposed.

Chu Jiange was dragged back to the Sect by Zifu Elders and locked in confinement for three years.

And what about Shen Shubai?

He became the candidate for the next Mansion Master of the Xuanhuang Immortal Mansion.

The entire Eastern Wasteland was waiting to see what he would choose.

Whether to give up his future and elope with Chu Jiange, or to sit on that chair.

Shen Shubai chose the chair.

Not only did he choose the chair, he also married the daughter of the previous Mansion Master of the Xuanhuang Immortal Mansion.

On the day of the wedding, Chu Jiange went alone, sword in hand, to the gates of the Xuanhuang Immortal Mansion.

She did not make a scene, she did not cry, and she did not scold.

She just asked Shen Shubai one question.

"Those three hundred poems, do you still acknowledge them?"

Shen Shubai stood beneath the mountain gate arch, with red candles and guests filling the hall behind him.

He lowered his head and did not say a word.

Chu Jiange turned and left.

After returning to the Zifu Sword Pavilion, Chu Jiange ground away the poems on her sword, word by word.

She ground them for seven full days.

After that, Chu Jiange became the Sect Head of the Zifu Sword Pavilion, cultivated the Supreme Heartless Sword, and shook the world.

Shen Shubai became the Mansion Master of the Xuanhuang Immortal Mansion.

The relationship between the two Holy Lands had never eased since then.

Border conflicts increased year by year, and the enmity between the Disciples was passed down from generation to generation.

The older generation knew this past well.

The "old acquaintance" that Zhou Baichuan spoke of was exactly the thorn that pricked at this memory.

In the plaza.

Gu Changsheng took all of this in, a cold light flashing in his eyes.

Just at this moment, a figure stumbled out from the gate of the Tianyuan Ancient Realm!