Volume One: Chaos in Yan-Yun Chapter Thirty-One: The Great Recluse, Hidden in the World (Part Four)
Li Jinxing was the foremost sage of the mainland, though in his early years, he was not adept at cultivation. Naturally, he too had a protector of the Way—his origins shrouded in mystery, yet one name was known to all: Li Shouli.
As early as the era of Great Tang, he had already attained the Realm of Guiding Radiance. In his lifetime, the Void Path seemed hopeless, but by some unknown means, Li Jinxing enabled him to ascend step by step to the very pinnacle of the Void Path. Later, during the first southern invasion of the demons, he was defeated by the Eighth Divine General of the Demon Race and lost an arm. Even Li Jinxing’s medical prowess could not restore it, so he vanished from the world.
By reckoning, he must be fifteen hundred years old—a lifespan rivaling that of Dugu Feiyun. To live so long, the primary requirement was the Unification of the Way.
Realizing this, Snow Without a Trace’s face grew grave.
“After all these years, I did not expect you to reach this realm as well,” Li Shouli remarked, his tone tinged with emotion.
Snow Without a Trace inquired, “You have seen me before?”
Li Shouli shook his head and gazed into the void. “I am not speaking of you, but of him.”
His voice was soft, yet the weight of his words was immense.
Snow Without a Trace’s brow furrowed.
Feng Yue glanced around the area.
Chen Yang felt a chill crawl over his scalp.
Their standoff had not been brief, yet it seemed someone had been watching from the shadows all along.
“I have long believed that those like us—remnants of the previous dynasty—should quietly wait somewhere for the demons’ third southern invasion, then throw our lives onto the path of death. I never expected to fall here instead.” Ripples shimmered in the air, and from within stepped a man clad in white robes, black hair flowing loosely down his shoulders. “Shouli, is it worth it?”
Li Shouli shook his head. “My life was given to the war between humanity and demons long ago. Now, I live only for the Master.”
The man chuckled softly. “The world calls Li Jinxing ‘Master,’ but you should not.”
Li Shouli replied, “He who excels is a teacher. Moreover, he saved my life—without him, I would have died long ago.”
The man shrugged. “That simply means you are still of use to him.”
Li Shouli’s gaze was profound. “Everyone has their purpose. If mine is to aid the Master, that is a fortune earned over countless lifetimes.”
The man seemed surprised and asked, “What sort of spell did Li Jinxing cast over you?”
Li Shouli only shook his head and fell silent.
Autumn wind rose again in the field.
A sense of deadly solemnity filled the world.
Yet there was no thunder, nor any other celestial phenomenon.
When those who have unified with the Way do battle, even Heaven and Earth must show due respect.
For instance, with silence.
At that moment, Feng Yue’s eyes suddenly lit up. “You’re Mo Gu of Qingshui Commandery?”
In a battle of the Unification of the Way, even Heaven and Earth must remain silent. Yet he spoke out.
If one does not explode in silence, one perishes in it.
No one chooses to perish. Thus, Li Shouli and Mo Gu both struck at once.
If the phrase “force of ten thousand thunders” could be used, their exchange surpassed any mere thunderous might.
Snow Without a Trace raised the Sword Without a Trace, its razor-sharp aura splitting the oppressive force surging toward him in two.
Feng Yue, shielded by the Pearl of Rising and Sinking, merely staggered before regaining his footing, his face pale.
The Shadow Guard suffered most—blasted to the ground by the shockwave, unable to move.
A fierce wind rose, and the wild grass conjured by Ke Chen’s art danced madly, frequently ripping free of the earth to spin upward with the gale, surging against the sky.
A rift of several fathoms tore open in the heavens!
No wonder even the sky dared not speak!
The tempest raged for a brief moment before gradually fading.
The scene was left in utter chaos.
Mo Gu suddenly arched his brow and uttered a sharp command.
The gales ceased at once, and the wild grass scattered.
Li Shouli and the others had vanished from the field, as had the Sage of Medicine and his companions.
Snow Without a Trace closed his eyes, expanding his divine sense.
“Don’t bother searching. With the power of the Unification of the Way, they could be anywhere—not necessarily still in Northern Yan,” Mo Gu said.
“Did the Divine Emperor send you?” Snow Without a Trace opened his eyes to ask.
“Did Dou Xiaotong send you?” Mo Gu retorted.
“You arrived long before?” Snow Without a Trace’s gaze was deep.
“A breath before you,” Mo Gu replied, then continued, “What did Dou Xiaotong tell you?”
Snow Without a Trace answered, “What could a storyteller say to me?”
Mo Gu pondered for several moments, unsure. “Which tale?”
Snow Without a Trace replied, “The Scroll of the Heavenly Heart.”
Mo Gu considered this and said, “His Majesty will handle this matter.”
Snow Without a Trace remarked, “Li Jinxing’s appearance at this time will not be easily dealt with.”
“If Li Jinxing were so easily handled, would he have survived until now?” Mo Gu shot him a glance. “Don’t worry, I am not the only Divine Guard here.”
Snow Without a Trace raised an eyebrow.
Mo Gu looked south. “The Blade Divine Guard is at the Pass of Heavenly Principle, the Sword Divine Guard at Mount Umong.”
Blade and sword arrived, joined now by the Wind.
Thus assembled the three great Divine Guards.
The Blade and Sword were both middle-realm Void Path masters, and with the Wind Divine Guard, a figure of the Unification of the Way.
The Divine Emperor truly thirsted for Li Jinxing’s life; just a whisper on the wind prompted him to send nearly half the top masters of Wuyang City.
If he did not know the truth, Snow Without a Trace might have suspected the demon horde was already at the Pass of Riding the Wind.
“Li Jinxing may not appear,” he said suddenly.
Mo Gu shot him another glance. “Without the Rivers and Mountains Chessboard, how could Li Jinxing hide from the Mirror of Heavenly Mechanism?”
Snow Without a Trace wished to say more.
Suddenly, from the south erupted a surge of blade energy, shaking the heavens.
Mo Gu had already vanished.
Snow Without a Trace frowned, sighed, and likewise disappeared.
Only shattered grass and the scars of devastation remained across the field.
…