Chapter 1156 - Coming by Boat
The wind rose and the clouds churned.
Everyone had a premonition that shocking changes would soon be in store for the Wilds.
This time, the mighty factions of the starry skies had come prepared to take the Swordmaster of Abstruse Force down, and they made no attempt to disguise their murderous intentions!
“His Excellency Su is a sovereign of the Dao of the Sword respected throughout the Wilds, yet now, these outsiders are threatening him. They demand that he kneels and admits to his crimes. Truly detestable!”
Some people were overcome with indignation.
“How can any eggs survive when a nest is overturned? If His Excellency Su loses, the Wilds’ cultivators.... Will lose their pillar of support!”
Others were overcome with worry.
“I can see it now. The fate of the Wilds rides on this battle, and the factions of the starry skies have joined forces. There’s no way they’re only targeting His Excellency Su. It’s highly likely that they’ll try to subjugate all of the Wilds!”
...All types of discussions arose throughout the Nine Provinces. Waves of uproar swept through the Wilds.
The cultivation factions of the Nine Provinces couldn’t stay calm. All of them were afraid of what they might lose.
But there were also factions that delighted in Su Yi’s misfortune.
“So, Su Xuanjun is finally getting his just desserts?”
“I said it a long time ago. Given his prideful conduct, it was inevitable that he’d suffer a major loss sooner or later. See? His punishment has finally arrived!”
“Su Xuanjun is doomed. Either he lowers his head in submission, or he flees for his life. There’s no third option! But if he lowers his head, he’ll ruin his reputation and prestige as the sovereign of the Wilds. Furthermore...lowering his head won’t necessarily save him!”
“It’s a pity about Su Xuanjun. Had he decided to lie low after his reincarnation, he wouldn’t have invited such a disaster. Instead, he revealed his sharp edge, killing experts of the Studio of the Heart, Church of the River of Stars, and Nine Heavens Pavilion. Ultimately, he brought this calamity upon himself!”
Just as the Wild were in uproar, word spread of Su Xuanjun’s stance on the matter. Within ten days, he’d visit Red Dust Demon Palace personally. Furthermore, he’d ordered the powerhouses of the stars beyond to wash their necks and wait!
A single stone could create a thousand ripples.
When Su Yi made his position clear, every expert, regardless of status or cultivation, reacted in much the same way: “Is Su Xuanjun insane?”
“He’s just one person, but he wants to challenge over a hundred factions of the stars beyond with nothing but a sword? How is that any different from seeking death?”
“These powerhouses of the starry skies have come prepared, but he’s still provoking them like this? How unwise!”
“What on earth is His Excellency Su thinking? Why is he acting so insane!?”
“It seems His Excellency Su has no escape routes left. Otherwise, there’s no way he’d knowingly go to his death like this.”
......
“How ignorant are the masses? How could they understand Daoist Su’s character and pride? Whether he’s trying his hardest to escape certain death or simply unconcerned, since he’s made his decision, I’ll naturally make an appearance.”
In the Little Western Paradise, Buddhist Master Inkstone Heart emerged from seclusion.
In the Demons’ Elysium, the Heavensdeath Demon Empress sighed and murmured softly, “I just knew Big Brother Su would make this choice. He’s the type to die before lowering his head...”
That very day, this supreme expert among the Wilds’ Demonists silently left her sect.
Ancestor Peng, the Border Mountain Yao Ancestor, and the other old-timers had long since known Su Yi’s decision. They too made arrangements, as they’d decided to accompany him!
Admittedly, they’d agreed not to intervene in the upcoming battle. But even so...
Who could really just watch from the sidelines?
......
The world was in uproar. All eyes were on Red Dust Demon Palace.
They were waiting for the curtains to open on this shocking storm!
Outsiders assumed Su Yi was quivering with fright and preparing assiduously, but in stark contrast with their assumptions, Su Yi spent the next few days utterly leisurely and composed.
When he wasn't cultivating, he accompanied Wen Lingxue, Cha Jin, Wen Xinzhao and the others.
They feasted, traveled, enjoyed the beauty of the scenery, sipped tea beneath the pines, and chatted beneath the light of the moon. All of it was a delight.
And at night, he and Cha Jin contemplated the Grand Dao together, sharing their attainments in dual cultivation.
However, because Su Yi’s cultivation had grown too strong, Cha Jin obviously couldn’t keep up. After every session of dual cultivation ended, she collapsed, quivering from head to toe.
Fortunately, Qing Wan soon recovered, and this two-person operation turned into a threesome. This gave it an altogether different wondrous charm.
“Big Brother Su Yi, you really aren’t worried at all?”
Today, Su Yi and Wen Lingxue were boating on the lake, admiring the mountains reflected on the surface of the water.
Su Yi sprawled out lazily in the boat, using his hands as a pillow. He seemed as relaxed as could be.
“Will worrying help?” Su Yi asked distractedly.
“Uh...” Wen Lingxue didn’t know what to say to that.
Su Yi laughed. “A calm proceeds every storm. Who knows how many cultivators are waiting to see me make a fool of myself? They think I’m sick in the head, and that I’m doomed, but if I were really as inept as they say, how could I have dominated the Wilds for so many millennia?”
His voice revealed his exasperation, as well as a hint of pride.
“But this is different,” Wen Lingxue earnestly corrected him. “These enemies come from the stars beyond the Wilds, and they’ve made ample preparations. Big Brother Su Yi, whatever you do, don’t underestimate them!”
Su Yi could sense her heartfelt concern, and he couldn’t help but smile. “I understand.”
Just as they were about to disembark and return, Wen Lingxue suddenly paused, as if working up all her courage. She lowered her head and whispered almost inaudibly, “Big Brother Su Yi, I.... I want to be like Big Sister Cha Jin, and... uh...”
As she spoke, her fair face flushed red, and her jade-like hands clenched. She struggled even to get the words out.
She practically buried her head in her chest.
Her dress swayed as the light of the heavens illuminated her extraordinary figure and clear, beautiful face. That rosy hue made her extraordinarily charming. Hers was a lively beauty, full of vitality.
Su Yi froze, then flicked her on the forehead and laughed. “What’s going on in that little head of yours?”
Wen Lingxue gingerly rubbed her forehead, then looked askance at Su Yi, as if chastising him. “I... It wasn’t easy to work up the courage to say that!”
She seemed peeved.
Su Yi was no upstanding gentleman, nor was he a stickler for the rules. How could he mistake the young woman’s overflowing affection?
And Wen Lingxue was an extraordinarily moving beauty on top of all that! She’d grown up over the years, and as her cultivation improved, so too did her good looks.
Even her figure was perfect, with curves in all the right places.
What kind of man would he be if he said he wasn’t tempted?
But Su Yi felt a bit strange about Wen Lingxue’s feelings.
After all, he’d always doted on her and protected her as he might a little sister. Although part of him did desire her, well, not even rabbits ate the grass directly around their burrows.
“You’re different from Cha Jin, and from Qing Wan.” Su Yi smiled and pinched her cheeks, which were still puffed up with anger. “Should the opportunity arise, let me make the first move.”
“Mm!?” Wen Lingxue’s sparkling eyes widened, and she stammered, “B-Big Brother S-Su... When you say ‘make the first move,’ what...do you mean?”
Her behavior was a bit unnatural, as if she couldn’t overcome her bashfulness.
“Guess for yourself.” Su Yi couldn’t help but laugh as he put his hands behind his back and walked off.
The young woman’s questioning voice emanated from far behind him. “Then tell me, when will an opportunity arise?”
Su Yi turned and saw her graceful figure standing on the shore, pretty as a painting and dazzling beneath the reflected light of the heavens.
“When you’ve found something delicious, you need to savor it instead of eating it all at once. Just wait.” Su Yi smiled and waved.
Wen Lingxue spat in response, and her face flushed red. Her eyes filled with embarrassment, but inwardly, she was delighted.
A while later, she let out a deep sigh, then touched her still-burning cheeks. “Just now... that was really... so embarrassing I could have died...”
......
One day passed, then another.
Dawn soon broke on the tenth day, the day of their showdown!
These ten days had been extraordinarily unbearable for the cultivators of the Wilds. Every day felt like a year.
This was an unprecedented storm, and the fate of the Wilds’ world of cultivation was on the line. The curtains were just about to open. Who wouldn’t have been tense? Who wouldn’t have been nervous?
During these ten days, countless people analyzed the outcome of the upcoming battle.
But their conclusions were startlingly similar: all of them thought the Swordmaster of Abstruse Force had almost no hope of victory!
This made their hearts clench with wordless grief and helplessness.
It was obvious to everyone that the factions of the stars beyond had sent this massive lineup as a show of force! They wanted to use the strongest power they could muster to crush the Swordmaster of Abstruse Force like rotten wood. This was both revenge and a way to instill terror into the hearts of the Wilds' countless cultivators!
During these ten days, experts of the Wilds’ peak actions set off and began their journey to Red Dust Demon Palace.
Even long-secluded old codgers, people who hadn’t shown their faces in ages and those who’d practically separated themselves from the outside world, showed up. Furthermore, without exception, the leaders of the Wilds’ top factions all came to watch in person!
In the eyes of the general populace, this disturbance alone was proof of how much attention the impending storm was receiving.
But the old-timers instead felt desolate and bleak.
Why had the top experts of the Wilds all stepped forth?
It was simple: because they too felt utterly enormous pressure. This battle would determine the fate of the Wilds, and they were worried about the outcome.
This was proof that... they weren’t all that confident in the Swordmaster of Abstruse Force!
......
The outskirts of the Wilds’ Spirit Province.
The Sea of Falling Stars.
The Mountain of Ten Thousand Currents.
This was a famous blessed ground that floated above the Sea of Falling Stars. Throughout history, it had been under the control of Red Dust Demon Palace.
It was also their ancestral ground.
From the sky above the Sea of Falling Stars, you could proceed directly into outer space!
Now, the shore of the Sea of Falling Stars was packed with cultivators from all over the Wilds, their ranks stretching as far as the eye could see.
The powerhouses of the Wilds’ peak factions had already entered the Sea of Falling Stars, and they stood some distance from the Mountain of Ten Thousand Currents.
There was no end to the spectators!
This was the day of the promised battle!
Early in the morning, as the light of the heavens broke through the clouds, it illuminated the surface of the water, casting scattered golden radiance. It was a beautiful sight.
But the atmosphere was strangely silent and heavy.
Everyone was waiting and looking for a certain someone.
Suddenly——
A little skiff approached from the distant seas, piercing the waves.
A tall, upright figure stood atop it.
He was dressed in blue, transcendent and extraordinary. One hand was behind his back, while the other held a jug of wine. As his boat soared through the wave, his robes and long hair fluttered around him.
Beneath the light of the heavens, he glowed with ethereal radiance, as unreachable as an immortal, carefree and composed.
The crowd was instantly in uproar. All eyes were upon him.
The most legendary sword cultivator in the Wilds... had arrived!
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