Chapter 110: Sword Qi Runs Rampant on the Grievance Resolution Plain

Yan Dong’s reaction was nothing unfamiliar to Master Guyun. Which disciple in the hall didn’t look the same way upon seeing him?

He smiled faintly and, with a wave of his right hand, a current of pure, potent spiritual energy swept two spiritual talismans from the table into Yan Dong’s hands. Overwhelmed, Yan Dong accepted them.

“For hundreds of years, no disciple from the Nature Hall has dared to issue a direct challenge, and now they’ve come for our Ancient Cloud Hall. You must handle this well. The victory must be clean and beautiful, lest anyone spread gossip about my hall,” Master Guyun said.

“I hear you’ve accepted many wagers, but others have also given plenty to Qin Haoxuan. To ensure your victory is flawless, I will give you these two spiritual talismans! Remember, the white jade one is for dealing with Pu Hanzhong. Since he dared to provoke the might of our hall, it doesn’t matter if you injure him severely. As for that Qin Haoxuan, use the green jade talisman I’m giving you. But remember, you absolutely must not take his life. That boy is still of some use to this master.”

“Yes, thank you, Hall Master, for the gift! This disciple will remember your words and will not bring shame upon the Ancient Cloud Hall!”

Master Guyun nodded in satisfaction, adding another reminder. “You can cripple that Pu Hanzhong, but you must watch yourself with Qin Haoxuan. If you break his arms or legs, this master will not forgive you! However, since he dared to challenge you, you should teach him a lesson so that others know the disciples of the Ancient Cloud Hall are not to be trifled with. As for how much force to use, you will have to gauge that yourself.”

Although Master Guyun’s tone was calm and gentle, it struck Yan Dong’s ears like a clap of thunder. He repeatedly agreed, his heart burning with curiosity.

Why was the Hall Master paying special attention to Qin Haoxuan? He had heard that the boy was somewhat strange and had planned to use a heavy hand against him to prevent any oddities from occurring. But now… it seemed he had to hold back. What was he to do?

As he walked out of the Dianjing Pavilion—a place countless disciples of the Ancient Cloud Hall dreamed of visiting—Yan Dong wished he would never have to return.

By now, cold sweat had completely soaked his robes, enough to be wrung out. His heart was filled with a deep longing for Master Guyun’s level of power.

“Pu Hanzhong, Qin Haoxuan… just you wait until tomorrow.”

The biannual Minor Martial Tournament was a grand occasion for the disciples of the Taichu Sect. Their normal lives were busy and fulfilling, filled with arduous cultivation, farming, alchemy, or talisman crafting.

They had few days off throughout the year, and forms of entertainment were practically nonexistent.

Although the Taichu Sect had over ten thousand disciples, they were usually busy with their own affairs. Aside from the perpetually bustling market at Yixiantian, the Minor Martial Tournament was the only time one could see a large gathering of cultivators.

The tournament was held at the Grievance Resolution Plain , located about a hundred

li from Emperor Peak. To walk the rugged mountain path would take at least a day, so the disciples all arrived by Immortal Cloud Carts.

While the Taichu Sect was a sect of cultivators, very few possessed a true flying sword. Even arriving on a sword embryo was enough to attract a great deal of attention.

The sect’s great protective array only guarded a few of the most important mountains, such as Emperor Peak. Outside its range, the sky was clear and crisp, unaffected by the illusion formation.

Qin Haoxuan’s luck was quite good. As he rode the Immortal Cloud Cart, he saw an elder responsible for maintaining order at the tournament flying over on his sword.

A long rainbow of light trailed behind the blade, drawing countless eyes. His spectacular entrance was like a flash of dazzling lightning.

“How majestic! It must be great to be an elder,” Qin Haoxuan couldn’t help but sigh.

Besides Qin Haoxuan, the cart also carried Xu Yu , Murong Chao , Luo Jinhua, and Pu Hanzhong. After Qin Haoxuan’s sigh, he noticed that everyone, including Luo Jinhua, had a burning light in their eyes. It seemed the allure of a flying sword was truly irresistible!

Luo Jinhua picked up the topic. “Not every elder has a flying sword. Their value is far beyond what those who hold the title of elder, but not the substance, could ever possess.”

“So there are different ranks of elders?” Qin Haoxuan asked, puzzled.

“Of course. If you don’t make any major mistakes and your cultivation reaches a certain level, you’ll become an elder once you’re senior enough. Or, if the sect sees that you have no more hope in cultivation, they might assign you to do odd jobs at the Immortal Cloud Cart station or give you a plot of spirit land to live out your final years. Do you think that kind of elder could possibly own a flying sword?”

Since the cart was rented by Luo Jinhua and she was able to drive it herself, she spoke without reservation.

Qin Haoxuan nodded in understanding. No wonder the elders in charge of menial tasks around the sect didn’t seem to cultivate.

Their path had already come to an end, and the sect gave them a title so they could use their remaining years to benefit the next generation. “Then the elder we just saw, he must be an elder in the truest sense, right?”

Luo Jinhua nodded, a look of reverence in her eyes. “Only those qualified to join the Elder’s Council are the true elite of our Taichu Sect. Their strength is all at the Spirit Tree Realm or higher. They are the pillars of our sect! Only those elders can possess a true flying sword.”

“Then how many elders are in the Elder’s Council?”

Luo Jinhua shot him an odd glance. “How would I know the specific number?” she said, annoyed. “In any case, there are very, very few.”

As the Immortal Cloud Cart approached the Grievance Resolution Plain, Qin Haoxuan gazed out, his jaw dropping in amazement.

The plain was enormous. From a distance, he could see at least several hundred dueling arenas. These weren’t built by hand; rather, they were natural rock formations that had been shaved flat to create ready-made stages.

Qin Haoxuan watched for a while, a look of confusion in his eyes. He felt that the positioning of the arenas on the plain was peculiar, as if they had been deliberately arranged. It resembled a Yin-Yang Bagua formation, but not quite.

Soon, Xu Yu also noticed something was amiss. She turned to Luo Jinhua and asked, “Senior Sister, is this whole plain a formation?”

Luo Jinhua nodded in satisfaction. “Junior Sister Xu is truly brilliant to have noticed its extraordinariness so quickly. The Grievance Resolution Plain was originally a natural labyrinth formation. Later, a senior of the sect used their great power to modify it, laying down the ‘Positive and Negative Two Principles Formation.’

It contains the profound principles of heaven and earth’s mutual creation and destruction. Under the formation’s effects, no matter how badly an arena is damaged, it will be restored to its original state within an hour—unless the combatants are at the level of our sect ancestors, those in the Dao Fruit Realm, whose strength is great enough to shatter the formation itself.”

Qin Haoxuan was secretly speechless. An expert at the level of a sect ancestor was a rare sight indeed. If they were to truly fight, it would probably sunder the heavens and crack the earth.

They disembarked from the Immortal Cloud Cart and, under Luo Jinhua’s lead, made their way onto the Grievance Resolution Plain.

The wide plain was already crowded, mostly with spectators. For the many cultivators who had no grudges to settle, the biannual tournament was still a grand event.

“Why are there so many onlookers?” Qin Haoxuan asked in disbelief. “Is watching others settle their scores so entertaining?”

Luo Jinhua explained, “This isn’t just simple spectating. They come here to learn. As long as they aren’t approaching a critical breakthrough, disciples of the Taichu Sect will often give themselves a few days off, both to relax their minds and bodies and to learn by watching others fight. There have been many who, after watching a duel between experts, experienced a sudden moment of enlightenment and returned to break through a bottleneck that had troubled them for a long time.”

The spectators observed, speaking in low voices. From time to time, a disciple who had seen something brilliant would cry out in joy, their face a mask of sudden understanding. Onlookers would gaze at them with envy, knowing that the person would be able to break through their current bottleneck upon their return.

Pu Hanzhong, who had been silent all this time, coughed a few times and added, “The greatest taboo in cultivation is to lock yourself away. Sharpening the axe doesn’t delay the work of cutting wood. Appropriate exchange and learning bring nothing but benefits to your cultivation. You must remember this in the future; never shut yourself away.”

Qin Haoxuan nodded seriously.

He walked into the middle of the plain. Coincidentally, an intense duel was underway on a nearby stage. A large crowd had gathered around it, far more than the surrounding arenas, indicating that the two combatants were quite powerful and their fight was worth watching.

Qin Haoxuan was about to stop and take a look when suddenly, a pillar of sword qi shot up from the stage, soaring into the clouds. The sword light flashed, and its killing intent was bone-chilling. The sheer power radiating from the attack startled Qin Haoxuan, even from a distance.

After that first pillar of sword qi rose, others began erupting from stages all across the plain. In an instant, the entire Grievance Resolution Plain was suffused with sword qi, thick with a grim, murderous atmosphere!

Looking up, he saw a white cloud drifting overhead. It was now riddled with countless small holes from the sword qi, making it look like a floating sieve.

It wasn’t just Qin Haoxuan; Xu Yu and Murong Chao also wore expressions of awe and envy.

Qin Haoxuan sighed with emotion. “I’ve been in the Taichu Sect for five months and thought I had just about touched the threshold of cultivation, having fought against cultivators at the Fifth and Sixth-Leaf of the Spirit Sprout Realm. But seeing this sword qi today, I finally realize that my journey has only just begun.”

Luo Jinhua covered her mouth and giggled, but her tone held a hint of disdain for the sword qi. “You call this sword qi? Didn’t I tell you that flying swords are precious? If they were so common that even these people could use them, would they still be considered precious at all?”

“Then what are these?” Qin Haoxuan froze. If this soul-shaking sword qi wasn’t coming from flying swords, what was it?

The sharp sword intent felt as if it could make one’s very soul tremble. If this wasn’t from a real flying sword, then how much power did a true one possess? Qin Haoxuan stared at Luo Jinhua with eager anticipation.

“This is the sword qi from a Talisman Sword , which can also be called a Sword Talisman. You inscribe one, or several, or even a dozen talismans containing special spiritual energy onto a sword. When activated with your own spiritual energy, it can mimic some of the functions of a flying sword. It can be used three to five times, after which the talisman’s energy is depleted and the sword will turn to powder.”

As Qin Haoxuan and the others listened with rapt attention, she continued, “But don’t be fooled. Even though a Talisman Sword has some of a flying sword’s functions, a single strike from even the lowest-quality true flying sword could shatter it to dust, without a chance to even resist!”

Qin Haoxuan was left speechless. “How much does it cost to make a single Talisman Sword?” he asked.