They were halfway across the bridge, and with neither wind nor waves in sight, Xu Xian muttered, "This really is just a formality. Nothing's happening."
"You don't know?" Lin Qianqian asked.
Xu Xian looked at her suspiciously. "Know what?"
Lin Qianqian gave him a meaningful look. "Why must we inquire of the sword? What is the Sword Inquiry?"
Xu Xian shook his head.
Zhang Yang hesitated for a moment before also shaking his head.
Lin Qianqian smiled gently and said softly, "This bridge is called the Longevity Bridge, and this canyon is the One Sword Gorge. That mountain on the opposite shore is Sword Inquiry Mountain—the head of the Seven Peaks of Wendao Mountain, the main peak, and the true gate of the Wendao Sword Sect."
Pausing for a moment, she asked Xu Xian, "Do you know why this bridge is called the Longevity Bridge?"
Xu Xian continued to shake his head.
Lin Qianqian answered her own question. "'Upon the grand Longevity Bridge, inquire of the sword and tread the immortal path.' Crossing this bridge and stepping onto Sword Inquiry Peak means embarking on the path of cultivation and knocking on the gates of immortality. It is a form of symbolism. Once you cross this bridge, you are a disciple of the Wendao Sword Sect. On the path of cultivation, there are three thousand Great Daos, and all seek longevity. Thus, it was named the Longevity Bridge—meaning that by crossing it, one can achieve eternal life..."
Zhang Yang let out an "oh," suddenly enlightened.
Xu Xian, however, secretly complained in his heart.
'Superstition.'
Lin Qianqian asked again, "Then do you know why this canyon is called the One Sword Gorge?"
Xu Xian still shook his head, knowing absolutely nothing. Zhang Yang leaned closer, following Xu Xian's lead...
"The One Sword Gorge was not formed naturally; it was cleaved by a single sword strike. That is why it is called the One Sword Gorge."
Xu Xian shuddered and subconsciously looked around.
The gorge was so deep the bottom was invisible, so wide the edges were lost to sight, and so long that it stretched toward the horizon until it vanished...
Cleaved by a single sword strike.
Just how incredible must that strike have been?
Just thinking about it made his skin crawl, and he sucked in a cold breath.
"Hiss! That’s intense."
Lin Qianqian tucked her hands behind her back and tilted her small head up, her dimples showing as she spoke eloquently:
"Ten thousand years ago, this world was occupied by demons and overrun by beasts. Ferocious beasts from the Great Desolation frequently ravaged the mortal realm. At that time, a sword immortal entered the world with his blade, seeking to mend the falling heavens, slay demons, and save the people. With one man and one sword, he slaughtered his way through these lands until no one dared claim supremacy. His name shook the eight desolations and overawed the four seas. The beasts went into hiding, the devils retreated to the Demon Abyss, and the demonic beasts fled back to the Great Desolation."
"The world revered him as the Sword Ancestor."
"This Sword Ancestor was the founding patriarch of the Wendao Sword Sect."
"After the Sword Ancestor drove out the evil, he used supreme divine powers to move mountains and seas to ensure the demons and beasts would not return to plague the world. He used the art of celestial geomancy to lock the fortune of the three races here and established a sect, recruiting disciples to spread the Dao and suppress this region."
"Before the mountain gate, he struck out once, creating the One Sword Gorge. He used three immortal swords—Demon-Slaying, Devil-Suppressing, and Evil-Devouring—as the array cores to lay down a grand protecting formation within this canyon."
"The formation lies hidden in the abyss. Demons and beasts dare not move; if they touch it, the swords will emerge, and they will surely perish."
"Anyone who is not a disciple of the Wendao Sword Sect must cross the One Sword Gorge via this Longevity Bridge. Otherwise, the sect's grand formation will be triggered, slaying all invading enemies."
Stopping there, Lin Qianqian turned around and began walking backward, looking at the mesmerized Xu Xian with a beaming smile.
"What is the Sword Inquiry? Simply put, it is asking the three swords—Demon-Slaying, Devil-Suppressing, and Evil-Devouring—if you are fit to enter the Wendao Sword Sect. Why the Sword Inquiry? It is to prevent those great evils from using extraordinary means to obscure heavenly secrets and sneak into the sect."
"It may seem redundant, but it is actually to nip trouble in the bud. We only need to walk across and gain the recognition of the three swords to receive a wisp of sword breath from the sword stele to plant in our dantian. Afterward, when entering or leaving the Wendao Sword Sect's formation, we won't be forced to use this bridge."
"This is the origin of the third trial, the Sword Inquiry."
Zhang Yang’s eyes were clear as he finally understood.
"Oh—I get it. They're afraid some foul things might have mixed in among us."
Lin Qianqian nodded. "Yes."
Xu Xian rubbed his chin, deep in thought, and murmured, "'Those who are not of our kind are sure to have different hearts'? There's nothing wrong with that logic, but if the Wendao Sword Sect is so exclusionary, I'm afraid it will be hard for them to truly flourish. Staying safe in one corner is fine, but reaching the top of the world will be difficult..."
Xu Xian didn't know much about this world.
However, he did know something.
There were immortals riding clouds in the sky.
There were beasts occupying the deep mountains.
He often heard the village elders tell interesting stories about ghosts and beasts, and every time he listened, he felt as if he were there...
However.
Xu Xian was not a child, after all. As a transmigrator, his inherent perception was that whether they were ghosts, beasts, spirits, demons, or devils, they should be just like humans—there would be good and bad ones.
Of course.
Without knowing the full story, one shouldn't jump to conclusions. Perhaps there were unknown secrets involved?
"What did you say?" Lin Qianqian leaned her face in, asking curiously.
Returning to his senses, Xu Xian brushed her off. "Nothing."
Zhang Yang, meanwhile, scanned the surroundings warily and lowered his voice. "Hey, Brother Xian, do you think any foul things really did sneak in among us?"
Lin Qianqian smiled without speaking.
Xu Xian also chuckled. "What are you thinking? How could it be such a coincidence?"
Lin Qianqian chimed in, "Exactly... There might have been some who weren't afraid of death in the past, but there aren't any now. I told you, it's just a formality."
"True."
Zhang Yang felt that what the two said made a lot of sense, and the wariness in his eyes vanished instantly.
However...
In the next second.
Xu Xian froze in place, his eyes staring fixedly at a figure ahead. His throat bobbed.
Gulp!
"Why did you stop?"
The two were puzzled and gave him suspicious looks.
Xu Xian grumbled, "It couldn't be such a coincidence, right?"
The two were even more surprised, completely confused.
"Brother Xian, what are you talking about?"
"Yeah, you're being weird."
As the two spoke, they subconsciously followed Xu Xian's gaze, and they immediately looked as if they were facing a great enemy.
"How could he... mmmph!"
Zhang Yang pointed forward, about to cry out in alarm, but Xu Xian quickly covered his mouth. With a look from Xu Xian, Zhang Yang understood and nodded, forcing himself to swallow the words back down.
In front of them was a youth walking forward. However, the boy looked as if he had lost his soul, and his gait was very eerie.
Most importantly, there was a trail of footprints behind him that looked like melted black wax, emitting a faint, hard-to-detect black mist.
Furthermore, as he continued forward, the boy himself seemed to be slowly melting.
Lin Qianqian was very nervous and shrank behind Xu Xian. She was, after all, only twelve—just a slightly older child.
Facing this sudden unknown, fear was inevitable.
As for Zhang Yang, while his mouth was covered, his legs had already begun to shake.
Lin Qianqian subconsciously grabbed the hem of Xu Xian's clothes, asking nervously and apprehensively, "Xu Xian... what do we do?"
Xu Xian rolled his eyes, thinking how should he know? This was his first time seeing such a scene too. However, what was certain was that this thing definitely wasn't anything good.
His mind raced, and he whispered in an extremely low voice:
"Run!"
"Where do we run?"
"Shh... keep it down. Back away."
Rate on N.U.
