Chapter 18: An Overbearing Visit to the Izumo Sword Sect

At the foot of Mount Chuyun, a horse-drawn carriage moved slowly along the path, arriving before the gates of the Chuyun Sword Sect in a short while. Two disciples stood guard at the entrance. Seeing the black carriage approaching from a distance, they were taken aback.

"Who goes there? Halt immediately!" one disciple shouted, drawing his sword and eyeing the carriage with suspicion.

A young man and a young girl were seated at the front of the carriage, both looking quite youthful. However, when the guards sensed their cultivation levels, they collectively gasped. The girl possessed the cultivation of a first-level Spirit Shaping Realm expert, while the boy beside her had actually attained the fourth level of the Spirit Shaping Realm. It was terrifying! Within the Chuyun Sword Sect, only elders well past their fifties could hope to reach such heights.

"Call your Sect Master out," Jun Moxiao said, his gaze fixed on the guards as he raised an eyebrow.

Call the Sect Master out? The two disciples were stunned once more. Was this youth not being far too arrogant?

"Which sect are you from? State your name," one disciple asked, clearing his throat and putting on a stern face. Their Sect Master was a man of high status and great authority, constantly busy. If they were to report this blindly without even knowing the visitors' sect, they would likely face severe punishment for their incompetence.

"We are from the Shenlong Sect," Luo Li replied, her face cold as she declared their origin.

The two disciples exchanged bewildered glances. What was the Shenlong Sect? They had never even heard of it. "Apologies, but we have never heard of any Shenlong Sect," one of them replied bluntly. Had it been a renowned sect of the Guyue Dynasty, they would have known it, but this name meant nothing to them.

Luo Li's expression chilled. As the Sect Master of the Shenlong Sect, being turned away by two lowly cultivators at the Profound Core Realm was an affront to her dignity. With a flicker of movement, she vanished from the carriage like a phantom. Reappearing instantly before the two disciples, she drew her Supreme Golden Dragon Sword and struck, the blade coming to a halt right between the eyes of the guard who had spoken.

"You may not have heard of it before, but you will soon enough. Go and summon your Sect Master at once. If you are late... do not blame me for starting a massacre."

The biting chill from the sword's tip pierced the disciple's brow, causing his face to pale and cold sweat to bead on his forehead. He was merely a minor third-level Profound Core Realm cultivator; facing a powerhouse of the Spirit Shaping Realm, the sheer pressure of her aura was enough to leave him breathless.

"Please wait, I will go inform the Sect Master immediately!" The disciple scrambled back a few steps before turning and sprinting into the sect grounds. The other disciple, drenched in a cold sweat, stared at the beautiful girl in terror, swallowing hard. The power of the Spirit Shaping Realm was truly overwhelming!

The disciple who had run off to report reached the inner courtyard and found an elder in white robes. "Elder Mu, there are people from the Shenlong Sect outside asking to see the Sect Master. Please, go and report this!"

"What is the Shenlong Sect? I've never heard of it. Why are you being so reckless?" Elder Mu scolded, his face etched with annoyance.

"Elder Mu, they are incredibly powerful! Both of them are Spirit Shaping Realm experts!" the disciple said, his voice trembling with near-tears.

"What? Spirit Shaping Realm experts?" Elder Mu was shocked. In the Guyue Dynasty, such experts were figures who could shake the earth with a single stomp. Even the Chuyun Sword Sect only boasted eight such individuals. "Are you certain... of their cultivation levels?"

The disciple replied hurriedly, "I am certain, Elder Mu. The girl, who looks sixteen or seventeen, is at the first level of the Spirit Shaping Realm and claims to be the Sect Master. The boy, who is only fifteen or sixteen, has an even higher cultivation—the fourth level!"

"What did you say?" Hearing this, Elder Mu was so stunned he nearly fainted. A Spirit Shaping expert at fifteen or sixteen? That was terrifying! No such genius existed in the entire Guyue Dynasty. Could they be from outside the region? Realizing the gravity of the situation, Elder Mu rushed toward the Main Hall. Upon meeting the Sect Master, Li Qingshan, he delivered the report. Li Qingshan’s expression turned solemn; the arrival of two such powerful figures was no small matter.

"Come, follow me. Let us see what is happening," Li Qingshan said, stepping out of the hall and heading straight for the gate.

Upon arriving, Li Qingshan saw the two figures standing outside—a boy and a girl, both remarkably beautiful. A quick scan confirmed Elder Mu’s report: one was at the fourth level of the Spirit Shaping Realm, the other at the first. He sighed internally. After decades of cultivation, he himself was only at the fifth level. If given time, the youth before him would surely surpass him.

His eyes drifted to the black carriage behind them. It looked ordinary, yet it gave him a strange feeling. *Could there be an even greater expert inside?* he wondered. Cautious by nature, Li Qingshan released his divine sense to sweep the carriage, only to find it completely empty. Relieved, he assumed the carriage was simply the girl's transport. Though the idea of such a young girl being a Sect Master seemed laughable, the strength she displayed commanded respect.

"Greetings to our guests from afar. I am Li Qingshan, the current Sect Master of the Chuyun Sword Sect. May I ask who you represent?" Li Qingshan asked with a polite smile and cupped hands.

Luo Li replied with a calm expression and a slight bow, "I am Luo Li, Sect Master of the Shenlong Sect."

Inside the carriage, Ye Yun smiled to himself. Though Luo Li was young, her every gesture carried the dignity of a true master.

Li Qingshan stood with his hands behind his back, smiling. "And what brings you to our sect?"

"Summon everyone from your Chuyun Sword Sect who has traveled outside in the last two months," Luo Li said, her eyes narrowing. "I am looking for an enemy."

Looking for an enemy? Li Qingshan’s heart skipped a beat. Had some of his elders offended this Shenlong Sect?