Youthful Spirit

Yun Zheng released the youth’s hand and said with an air of mystery, "This is a secret."

Xu Xian was stunned, his gaze drifting to the stone tablet in his hand.

It was simple and ancient.

Heavy.

There was not a single ripple of spiritual qi emanating from it.

It was just an ordinary piece of jade. If he had to point out something special about it, perhaps it was just that it looked quite old.

But then again, in all the world, which stone wasn't old?

Xu Xian’s brow furrowed as he muttered softly, "A secret?"

Yun Zheng gazed at the clouds drifting over the distant mountains and said slowly, "Yes, a secret. A secret of the Wendao Sword Sect. This was given to me by Master back then. All these years, I have kept this secret, telling no one."

"When Master left, he specifically entrusted me with a task. He said that if the day came when I knew I was going to die, and if someone in the sect had broken that remnant chess game and gained the recognition of the Sword Mound—and if that person happened to have a decent character and was worthy of trust—then I should pass this secret on to him."

"If no such person existed, I was to take this secret with me to the grave..."

"I waited and waited. I waited for over nine thousand years. I originally thought I wouldn't find anyone, but it seems the heavens have treated me, Yun Zheng, quite well. Just as my tribulation is approaching, you arrived. Heh..."

Xu Xian remained silent, but he suddenly felt that the stone in his hand had become much heavier.

Furthermore, he found himself not particularly curious about this so-called secret anymore.

It was as if a voice was telling him that it might be better not to know. After all, the more one knew, the faster they tended to die.

Yun Zheng suddenly broke into a violent fit of coughing.

"Cough, cough, cough!"

His entire body trembled incessantly. His aged face seemed to grow even more weathered in an instant. Lowering his voice, he continued to speak.

"There isn't much I can tell you. In truth, Master and my four senior brothers and sisters are still within the sect; they haven't traveled far. However, they are close to me in age, and I fear their great tribulations are also approaching. Their lifespans are nearing their ends—perhaps a century at the shortest, or several centuries at the longest..."

"Deep within my grotto, there is a stone door. There is a pattern upon that door, and this stone tablet is the key. The answers you and I seek might very well lie behind that door."

"The future of Fanzhou..."

"The future of the Wendao Sword Sect..."

"The unknown truth behind this world..."

Yun Zheng paused, his weak gaze falling upon Xu Xian.

The look in his eyes was like the setting sun, gradually dimming as he continued, "Of course, I am giving this to you not because you must open that door or seek the truth hidden within."

"Master said that only when you feel you have the ability to stand against the entire world by yourself—and if his soul lamp has not yet extinguished—may you open that door and walk forward..."

"If you do not wish to, or if you feel you are not capable, then do as I did. Keep it hidden, or take it with you when you die. Or, wait for the next person you feel can be entrusted and pass the secret to him, just as I am passing it to you."

"Unfortunately, time is running out."

"I fear you won't be as lucky as I was to have the time to wait."

"Do you understand what I am saying?"

Xu Xian hesitated for a moment before nodding. "I understand!"

Yun Zheng smiled with relief, not forgetting to remind him, "Little Eleven, you must remember: first and foremost, you are Xu Xian. Only then are you the Little Grand-Uncle of the Wendao Sword Sect. You must live for yourself first before thinking of anything else..."

"What Little Ten told you might not be entirely correct. Master did say that with great power comes great responsibility. Master also said to be strict with oneself and lenient with others. But Master also said, 'Do not do to others what you would not want done to yourself.'"

"You should do what you want to do, not what others think you should do."

"No matter what you do, the premise must be that you yourself want to do it."

"Whether you wish to roam the world in the future, being a carefree little immortal who lives in the moment, or if you wish to hold your sword and seek the Dao, becoming a sage who is 'first to worry about the world's troubles and last to enjoy its pleasures'—first, you must ask yourself if that is what you want."

"Do not force others, and certainly do not force yourself."

"There is a saying in Daoism that is quite good: 'The Dao follows nature.'"

"It means eat when you're hungry, sleep when you're tired, curse when you're annoyed, fight when you're angry, drift when you're successful, and throw a fit when you're frustrated..."

"To summarize, it comes down to four words."

Yun Zheng left him hanging.

Xu Xian waited quietly.

Yun Zheng suddenly chuckled. "Because I feel like it."

Xu Xian’s brow twitched, and he let out a cheerful laugh.

"Heh!"

Yun Zheng added, "Just like this time, my sweep of the Great Desolation was simply because I felt like it. I'm going to die anyway, so why not do something grand? It satisfied me, left me with no regrets, severed five thousand years of the wilderness's fortune, and earned me a good reputation."

Yun Zheng paused and asked, "What do you call that?"

Xu Xian thought for a moment before a line instinctively escaped his lips, "Settling the affairs of humans and demons under heaven, winning a name that echoes through the ages."

Yun Zheng was slightly stunned. He savored the words, repeating them silently. He felt something was slightly off, yet it also felt entirely right.

Thus, he laughed heartily. "Exactly! Well said! That hits the nail right on the head."

Xu Xian gave a bitter smile. He wanted to laugh, but when he thought of Yun Zheng’s ultimate fate, the laughter wouldn't come.

Yun Zheng sighed and waved his hand. "Alright, I've finished all my nagging. I've said everything that needs to be said. Let's leave it at that."

Xu Xian gripped the stone tablet and waved it in front of him. "Rest assured, Senior Brother. I have taken everything you said to heart."

Yun Zheng raised his hand and patted Xu Xian’s shoulder, then gave it a gentle, firm squeeze. "Good lad, a fine youth indeed. It's a pity you were born a bit late. Otherwise, I could have protected you for a while longer. Now, you can only rely on your own fortune."

Xu Xian arched an eyebrow and said with grand ambition:

"Senior Brother, you can rest easy. In my eyes, those who call themselves immortals in this world are nothing more than common carp in a river—not worth mentioning."

"They were born earlier than me. It is not a case of 'kings never meeting,' but rather that all the world's powerhouses are hiding from my brilliance."

Yun Zheng’s body jolted. His withered, skeletal fingertips trembled uncontrollably several times.

In his cloudy yet deep eyes, a sharp light seemed to flicker.

He stared blankly at his Little Junior Brother, losing himself in a moment of stunned silence.

'The world's immortals are like common carp, not worth mentioning.'

'Born earlier than him.'

'Not kings never meeting, but avoiding his brilliance.'

How domineering.

How arrogant.

Li Qingshan loved to posture.

Xu Xian also loved to posture.

Yun Zheng knew that Xu Xian was posturing again, but this display was so grand that even he was momentarily dazed.

Wild!

Arrogant beyond all bounds!

"Senior Brother, why are you looking at me like that? Was I wrong?" Xu Xian asked.

Yun Zheng snapped back to reality, clicked his tongue, and inexplicably gave a thumbs-up. "That was some top-tier posturing. Even I feel inferior."

Xu Xian was momentarily stunned.

'He could tell?'

Yun Zheng added, "If you're ever afraid, just step back. The swords of the Wendao Sword Sect can still protect you all for another ten thousand years."

Xu Xian felt awkward.

"Uh..."

"That line wasn't bad either," Yun Zheng continued to praise.

Xu Xian scratched his head and said sheepishly, "It was just one thing leading to another."

Yun Zheng laughed and chatted, "After today, the entire world will remember your divine sword and my sword aura. They will remember the Wendao Sword Sect and fear us."

Xu Xian did not deny it; instead, a sense of pride welled up within him.

Yun Zheng seemed to remember something and pulled several storage bags from his robe.

"I almost forgot. I brought some things back for you."