Begonias haven't met the rain, pear blossoms are already like snow; half of spring has passed.
In the blink of an eye.
Xu Xian had been back for over a month, and during this time, the young man had stayed in the Zuiwan Residence, studying the Art of Delusion.
He had made some modest progress.
Yao Xiaoxiao balanced her cultivation and alchemy without neglecting either.
Lu Yuan slept soundly, just as he always did.
Li Qingshan still enjoyed acting superior while drinking.
The two young girls practiced hard every day, but they no longer suffered the hardships of life; since Xu Xian's return, the food had been exceptionally good.
Their moods had improved significantly.
Every day, they were full of motivation.
For over a month, the young man's heart remained tied to the Sword Tower. He commissioned the Merchant Hall to sell demon beast carcasses on his behalf and, regardless of the cost, to acquire immortal plants and immortal gold circulating on the market.
However...
Immortal plants and immortal gold were no ordinary items; they were always in high demand but short supply. To buy them, having money alone was not enough.
After all, the families and sects that possessed such things were rarely short of coin.
The results were inevitably underwhelming, and as for some of the rare items needed on his list, they were nowhere to be found.
He knew who had them.
But they simply would not sell.
This gave Xu Xian quite a headache, making him wonder if he would actually have to resort to robbery.
Liu Qinghui often delivered the items he found to Xu Xian, and every time he saw him, he could not help but complain.
"Little Grand-Uncle, these things you want are truly difficult to obtain."
Xu Xian would always respond with the same four words.
"Take it slow."
What else could he do?
Perhaps he needed to wait for a specific opportunity to arise, which also gave him a chance to stay quiet and composed for a while.
In the days that followed, Xu Xian practiced his sword technique, the Green Lotus Sword Song.
He practiced the divine ability, Delusion.
He refined his forging techniques.
He successfully reached the rank of an eighth-rank master forger.
In his spare time, seeing Yao Xiaoxiao refining pills, he joined in and learned a bit, making rapid progress.
Yao Xiaoxiao was left dumbfounded, claiming that Xu Xian was an alchemy grandmaster whose potential had been hindered by his focus on cultivation...
Xu Xian corrected her, saying he was not just an alchemy genius, but excellent and gifted in every aspect.
Yao Xiaoxiao did not deny it, as it was the truth.
Spring went and autumn came.
Time flew by. Among the new disciples Xu Xian oversaw, Tu Kongkong stood out from the rest. On a certain autumn morning, she was the first to succeed in foundation establishment.
Using only a single Foundation Establishment Pill, the little girl ran around the courtyard in joy, shouting and screaming.
A little nobody from Tushan had become a genius of the Wendao Sword Sect.
It was truly commendable!
Everyone offered their congratulations, though Yao Xiaoxiao felt a bit sour and made a point to emphasize, "Kongkong, you are great! Just like me; when I reached foundation establishment, I also succeeded with just one Foundation Establishment Pill."
The three of them believed her.
Xu Xian did not have the heart to expose the truth.
At noon that day, Xu Xian took Tu Kongkong to the Sword Mound to retrieve the sword that belonged to her.
As they climbed the steps, Xu Xian patiently explained the rules of the Sword Mound to Tu Kongkong, just as he had done for Wen Qingxue.
The Spirit Sword Pool, the Earth Sword Pool, the Heaven Sword Pool, the Immortal Sword Pool, and the Divine Sword Pool.
He told Tu Kongkong not to even think about the Divine Sword Pool; a demon should not be too ambitious and should instead strive to retrieve an immortal sword.
Tu Kongkong nodded vigorously.
"Do not worry, Master, I will work hard!"
Xu Xian said he had high hopes for her and told her to do her best, adding that if she returned with an immortal sword, she would become the youngest Little Grand-Uncle of the Wendao Sword Sect.
She would be ranked twelfth.
And he would then become her senior brother.
Tu Kongkong did not seem particularly interested in this, feeling that being Xu Xian's disciple was good enough; being a Little Grand-Uncle was useless.
Xu Xian said to her.
"If you pull out an immortal sword, then Li Qingshan and Lu Yuan will have to call you Little Junior Martial Aunt."
Upon hearing this, the little girl's eyes immediately lit up.
This was good, very good.
If nothing else, having Li Qingshan call her 'Martial Aunt' would be very satisfying. At the very least, she could be like her master; whenever she saw Li Qingshan, she could shout from afar.
"Little Shan, come to your Martial Aunt."
How amusing that would be.
She immediately promised Xu Xian again, "Master, do not worry. If I do not get an immortal sword, I will not return to the sect."
Xu Xian said with relief, "Just do your best!"
Tu Kongkong entered the Sword Mound and began her ascent.
Under Li Qingshan's prodding, Ye Xianyu also came along.
Xu Xian took the opportunity to propose a bet with Ye Xianyu, intending to trick her once more.
They would bet on whether Tu Kongkong could pull out an immortal sword.
If she could, Xu Xian would win.
If she could not, Ye Xianyu would win.
Ye Xianyu knew there was a catch and refused to bet no matter what.
Li Qingshan, however, was frantically fanning the flames from the side, telling Ye Xianyu not to be a coward and to bet with him. He even said Xu Xian was practically giving her free money, so why not take it?
How could an immortal sword be so easy to pull out?
His words made sense, and the logic was sound, yet Ye Xianyu always felt something was not quite right.
"I say, you two aren't trying to team up and trick me again, are you?"
Xu Xian said, "We would never."
Li Qingshan said, "Of course not."
Xu Xian said, "I just simply want to have a bet."
Li Qingshan said, "I just cannot stand how smug he looks."
Ye Xianyu rolled her eyes; only a fool would believe them.
She did not bet.
Li Qingshan was very frustrated, feeling that Xu Xian was too unreliable.
Xu Xian was also frustrated, feeling that Li Qingshan had been too obvious and ruined the act.
The more they looked at each other, the more annoyed they became.
Ye Xianyu was no fool. Ever since Xu Xian entered the Sword Mound and came back out, the place had been experiencing frequent anomalies, and rumors were spreading throughout the sect.
It was said the Sword Mound had chosen Xu Xian as its master.
Though it was a rumor and unconfirmed, it was certainly not without reason.
Tu Kongkong was Xu Xian's only disciple, and knowing his personality, he was fully capable of opening a back door for her.
Since she would not bet.
Then there would be no bet.
Xu Xian was also open-minded about it; how could such a shrewd person be so easily deceived?
Waiting.
Retrieving a sword took time, and climbing the steps took time. Li Qingshan drank wine, Ye Xianyu drank tea, and Xu Xian sat cross-legged in meditation.
His divine sense returned to the Divine Sword Pool.
Ye Xianyu's guess was indeed correct. With the construction of the third floor of the Sword Tower, Xu Xian's control over the Sword Mound had also reached a new level.
Not only could his divine sense return to the Sword Mound, but to some extent, he could also manipulate some of the laws within it.
He could not do much else, but lowering the gravity a bit to allow someone to reach the Immortal Sword Pool was not a major issue.
He was definitely going to open a back door for Tu Kongkong, but the prerequisite was that she had to climb to the Heaven Sword Pool herself.
And she had to have the courage to challenge the Immortal Sword Pool.
When an immortal sword emerged, according to the rules of the Wendao Sword Sect, Tu Kongkong would have to become a disciple of the Sword Ancestor. In the future, her soul lamp would be placed on the fifth floor of the Immortal Pavilion.
She would even be ranked within the Sword Pavilion.
So first and foremost, she could not be a talentless hack herself.
From Xu Xian's perspective.
Tu Kongkong climbed very quickly. In just one day, she reached the Heaven Sword Pool and began to challenge the Immortal Sword Pool.
During this time, Ye Xianyu teased, "The demon race bloodline indeed makes for a powerful physical body; she is climbing so fast?"
Xu Xian did not deny it.
However.
The long steps to the Immortal Sword Pool were the true watershed for geniuses.
One must know.
Even a rare sword dao genius like Li Qingshan had failed to pull out an immortal sword back then.
One day.
Two days.
Three days.
Four days.
On the long steps leading to the Immortal Sword Pool, a young girl was drenched in sweat, finding every step difficult.
Every single step she took seemed to require all of her strength.
Yet she remained persistent, gritting her teeth.
Her eyes were filled with defiance, unwillingness, and stubbornness.
"I can do it."
"I cannot embarrass my master."
She remembered many things, the words her master had spoken, what had happened outside the One Sword Gorge, and she thought of Tushan...
She not only wanted to prove herself but also did not want to let Xu Xian down.
She had to climb up, no matter what.
Rate on N.U.
