Chapter 873: Chapter 873: Sword Tower
From across the cliff earlier, this place just looked like an ordinary courtyard, with two shabby houses and nothing special about it.
But once he walked in, he realized there was more to it than met the eye; this little courtyard was actually this unique.
The courtyard was ringed on all sides with peach trees, and what was even more amazing was that, on this windswept mid-mountain slope, those peach trees were covered in blossoms, all blooming incredibly bright.
The courtyard wrapped in peach blossoms was a complete sea of pink, and the ground was covered by fallen petals, making it look even more like an Immortal Realm.
In the middle of the courtyard stood a small pavilion, but it wasn’t made from wood or stone; instead, it was hollowed out from a single massive tree trunk.
Although the trunk had been hollowed, all the branches and leaves above were still there.
Seeing Liu Zixuan’s surprised look, Elder Qing smiled faintly. "Well? My place isn’t bad, right?"
"Peach Blossom Spring beneath Profound Sword Mountain, petals falling like rain within the Spring." Liu Zixuan sighed from the heart.
Elder Qing’s lips curled up slightly. "Didn’t expect you, kid, to actually know how to make up verses!"
Liu Zixuan turned to look at Elder Qing. "You, old sir, can’t be just a simple sweeping elder, right?"
"Just because the place I live in is a bit unusual, you figure I’m not simple?" Elder Qing shot back.
"It’s only the second month now, not the season when peach blossoms are in full bloom. And this mountain is so cold—how could there possibly be this many peach blossoms?" Liu Zixuan said.
Elder Qing shook his head with a smile, sat down in the pavilion, took a wine flask and two cups from the side, filled them, then took a sip by himself. "But have you ever heard of a Cultivation Technique that makes peach blossoms bloom?"
This question directly left Liu Zixuan speechless.
In such a cold environment, to make peach blossoms flourish was something no ordinary person could do, unless they were a deity.
But in this world, deities simply don’t exist!
Puzzled no matter how he thought about it, Liu Zixuan sat down in front of Elder Qing. "Then what’s going on here?"
"This mountain is a volcano. Deep at the bottom there’s magma, so the ground temperature is very high. Naturally, that keeps the peach blossoms in full bloom." Elder Qing gave a teasing smile. "So? After hearing that, are you very surprised, and also a bit disappointed?"
"Surprised, sure, but not really disappointed." Liu Zixuan took a sip of the wine; the peach blossom fragrance was strong, so this wine was obviously Peach Blossom Brew.
"So when you look at things, you can’t let first impressions rule you. You have to first understand their essence. Otherwise, you’ll end up making a fool of yourself." Elder Qing said with a smile.
Hearing this, Liu Zixuan felt as if a heavy dose of insight had been poured into him. He respectfully raised his cup. "This junior has learned a lesson."
"Don’t give me that fake courteous crap." Elder Qing cursed with a grin and pushed the wine flask forward. "Just this one flask—once it’s empty, get lost and go rest."
"One flask? How is that enough?" Liu Zixuan shrugged. "Look at us, we count as fellow travelers fallen on hard times. We should at least drink till we’re drunk, right?"
"Fellow travelers fallen on hard times? How do you figure?" Elder Qing asked with interest.
"Me, I took first place in the tournament. Coming to Profound Sword Sect, I figured the elders would be fighting over me. But in the end, not a single elder wanted me. And you, old man, you’re probably the oldest in the Sect, should be respected and enjoying your retirement, yet you’ve become a sweeping elder even the ordinary disciples look down on. Isn’t that exactly what you call fellow travelers fallen on hard times?"
Listening to Liu Zixuan’s words, Elder Qing suddenly burst out laughing. "When you put it that way, kid, it really does sound like that."
But then he changed the topic. "Even so, it’s still only one flask. Just one a day. Don’t even think about an extra mouthful. This is top-grade Peach Blossom Brew. Usually I only drink a single cup. You came and I brought out a whole flask—already pains my heart!"
Liu Zixuan’s forehead instantly filled with dark lines. "Damn, no wonder you’re a sweeping old codger everyone dislikes. You’re stingy as hell!"
Elder Qing ignored Liu Zixuan, drained the wine in his cup in one go, and said, "Once you’re done drinking, hurry up and sleep. Tomorrow at three in the morning, get up and go sweep the main hall and courtyard across the way. Then come back to eat."
"I’m going by myself?"
"Nonsense. Now that I’ve got you as free labor, you expect this old man to still go?" Elder Qing cursed, then went straight into the room on the left.
Muttering a curse under his breath, Liu Zixuan drained the rest of the wine in the flask, then went back to his room to rest.
It was pretty simple and crude, but Liu Zixuan didn’t nitpick. A grown man isn’t some delicate girl; as long as the wind doesn’t blow through, it’s fine.
...
In the early hours of the next day, while Liu Zixuan was still in dreamland, he was yanked up by Elder Qing.
With no choice, Liu Zixuan grabbed a broom and went to the other side of the cliff to sweep. At three in the morning, you couldn’t even see a ghost.
By the time the sky was just getting light, he had just finished sweeping and saw some Martial Artists coming out of their rooms, drawing their swords and starting practice.
As for the Sword Techniques of Profound Sword Sect, Liu Zixuan really had no intention of learning them; his Cultivation Technique was already more than enough.
Taking advantage of the moment when everyone was practicing, Liu Zixuan put down the broom and headed back to the Peach Blossom House. Elder Qing had already prepared breakfast.
Eating as he talked, he asked, "I’ve finished sweeping over there. What’s next?"
"The big mountain where the main hall is located is called Profound Mountain, and the one we’re on is called Sword Mountain. In a bit, I’ll take you to the back of the mountain to clean the Sword Tower." Elder Qing said while drinking thin porridge.
"I only heard Elder Yang say that Profound Sword Sect has three halls. What’s this Sword Tower supposed to be?"
"Profound Sword Sect is a Sword Sect. What do you think the Sword Tower is?" Elder Qing snapped irritably.
"A place for storing swords and forging swords?" Liu Zixuan said, and his eyes suddenly lit up.
You have to know, what the Medical Immortal Sect wanted him to find was located in the place where swords were forged. He’d thought it would take a long time before he could even get near that place, but unexpectedly, by chance he’d ended up as a sweeper and was about to go there right away.
Once he scouted out the situation over there, he could quickly retrieve the item and save his beautiful master!
All of a sudden, Liu Zixuan couldn’t help but chuckle to himself.
Elder Qing raised an eyebrow. "You’re not plotting something shady, are you?"
"What shady? I’m just thinking about how I’m suddenly going to see a lot of fine swords, so I’m a little excited, that’s all." Liu Zixuan hurriedly finished his porridge and said quickly, "Let’s go!"
Elder Qing gave Liu Zixuan a strange look. "Why do I keep feeling like you’re a little fox, so crafty?"
"Don’t worry, foxes don’t bite people." Liu Zixuan said as he directly dragged Elder Qing up and headed toward the back mountain.
Soon, the two of them stopped at the base of a tall tower.
Looking up at the Sword Tower that seemed to pierce the clouds, Liu Zixuan muttered, "Stuff from a Hidden Sect really is this domineering, huh!"
"Of course. This Sword Tower is the very foundation of Profound Sword Sect. In the whole Sect, aside from this old man and the Sect Leader, it’s hard for anyone else to get in!" Elder Qing said proudly.
