Fusang Sword Heart Diagram

Chapter 82 Empty Sign-in
Neither of them had any spiritual power left, so they simply competed in swordsmanship.

When Ning Fusang thrust out his longsword, the tip trembled and gleamed with a cold light, like the reflection of starlight, making it impossible to see where the sword tip was aimed.

Shen Tu Lei was arrogant and complacent. Instead of dodging to the side, he faced the sword head-on and attacked.

"Even though their spiritual energy is exhausted, these two are still fighting fiercely and evenly matched. The battle for the championship is truly exciting!"

"The outer sect competition will last for three days, and today is the most exciting day. Who do you think will be the champion?"

"It must be Shen Tu Lei! His swordsmanship is as swift as lightning. You can feel the powerful force contained within it even from afar."

“Shen Tu Lei already had a reputation when he was in the outer sect. Everyone recognized that his swordsmanship was superb. If it were a pure swordsmanship contest, very few people could beat him.”

"Regardless of who is first or second, one thing is certain: both of them have very solid fundamentals in swordsmanship. It was a visual feast."

"With similar levels of swordsmanship, the final outcome will likely depend on who has better endurance. From this perspective, I also think Shen Tu Lei will win."

The disciples watching the battle expressed their opinions one after another. Overall, there were more people who supported Shen Tu Lei.

Ning Fusang spun his longsword, changing its trajectory with unparalleled skill. Shen Tu Lei's eyes widened slightly, and he retreated several steps, but his sleeve was still torn by the sharp Xuan Tie sword, leaving a long gash.

Before Shen Tu Lei could catch his breath, Ning Fusang raised his longsword, twirled it, and thrust it straight at him.

Her swordplay was swift and fierce, and in the blink of an eye it was already upon Shen Tu Lei's face. Shen Tu Lei's breath hitched, and his body reacted faster than his brain, raising his sword to block. Ning Fusang remained expressionless, slashing her Xuan Tie sword upwards while simultaneously shifting her body slightly to the side and pushing the sword with her palm.

Shen Tu Lei felt his palms go numb, and the Xuan Tie sword flew out and crashed into the barrier around the arena.

The crowd was silent, utterly still.

Even after the sect leader announced that Ning Fusang had won first place in the outer sect competition, Shen Tu Lei was still somewhat stunned.

The three-day outer sect competition has now come to an end, and the dust has settled. The top ten inner sect disciples—Ning Fusang, Shen Tu Lei, Xu Qiu, Yan Fuyu, Ying Xi Liu, Xu Jian Jia, Ke Rong, Xin Yi, Sun Ling, and Qi Shuangshuang—can all choose an elder to become their personal disciples at tomorrow's master selection ceremony.

The bright moon shone serenely, its light as clear as water, bathing the somewhat empty and desolate garden.

Ning Fusang presented the Sword Heart Diagram, fed it to Yu Cangjian with a hundred spirit stones, and then put it away.

The spirit stones I received from Xie Taiting last time, plus the spirit stones I earned from reselling some items, totaled about six thousand.

Ning Fusang receives about eight hundred supplies each month from the Taiyuan Palace, plus the spirit stones she already has.

She's quite wealthy now, more than enough to support a sword.

As for the Shattered Light Sword, it was nurtured in her dantian, absorbing spiritual energy, so she didn't need to deliberately feed it with spirit stones.

Ning Fusang noticed that the spiritual light of the Shattered Light Sword was even stronger than before, and it seemed to be approaching the level of a third-tier spiritual sword.

However, spiritual artifacts are different from magical artifacts. Magical artifacts are not fixed in rank. According to quality, they can be roughly divided into three grades: upper, middle, and lower. However, this is a very vague concept with no clear dividing line.

The grade of a spiritual artifact is basically fixed. To advance it, unless one encounters a great stroke of luck, the probability of simply nurturing it with spiritual energy is less than one in ten million.

Therefore, Ning Fusang did not believe that the Shattered Light Sword's spiritual light was much stronger than before, which meant it would advance to the next level.

The fine snow fell silently, covering the entire mountain.

As the first rays of sunlight shone through the clouds, the snow had not yet stopped. Above Kaiyang Peak Square, a transparent barrier was erected to block the wind and snow.

Amidst the solemn and grand tolling of the bells, colorful birds carrying flower baskets flew towards the high platform.

In front of each elder's seat is a flower basket piled high with fresh flowers, and in the center of each basket, whether delicate or elegant, lies a flower-shaped token carved from bamboo or wood.

According to the custom of the Southern Star Sword Sect, elders who are willing to take on disciples will inscribe their desired disciples on flower slips.

If the top ten disciples also write the name of this elder on their flower slips, the two will become master and disciple.

If the flower divination slip is only one-way, then the disciple shall choose another flower divination slip from all the elders who have chosen their own slips to become an apprentice.

Ning Fusang was at the head of the group, with Shen Tu Lei to his left and Xiao Qiu to his right. The remaining seven disciples were a step behind, lined up in a row.

Xiao Qiu turned to look at Xu Jianjia, her face full of disappointment: "Why can't an elder take on two disciples at the same time?"

She wanted to be with her young mistress.

Someone in the group hummed softly without saying a word, but what they wanted to express was already perfectly clear.

Only ten disciples have the option to choose which elder to apprentice under, but the Southern Star Sword Sect has far more elders who can accept disciples.

If an elder can choose multiple disciples, the other elders can only choose from the remaining thirty. But who wouldn't want to select disciples from the top ten?

Therefore, an elder can only choose one disciple from among the top ten disciples.

Those who are not selected as disciples either have to wait for the next outer sect competition, or they can choose a disciple from among the top ten.

Ke Rong glanced at Xiao Qiu and Xu Jianjia, not quite understanding why they insisted on being together. Even though Xu Qiu had once been Xu Jianjia's maid, they were now both disciples of the Southern Star Sword Sect, and their status was equal.

Xu Qiu still addresses Xu Jianjia as "Miss" in private.

What we brought from our mortal lives has not been erased.

Noticing Ke Rong's probing gaze, and seemingly knowing what he was thinking, Xu Jianjia tilted her eyes and looked at him, saying, "I didn't force my Xiao Qiu."

Ke Rong's face showed an unnatural expression, as if his thoughts had been exposed.

He chuckled twice and turned his head away.

The sect elders and their disciples arrived one after another and took their seats.

Shen Yuanxi retrieved the flower slips from the flower basket for her master. Yu Wanwu gently covered them with his palm, and a layer of hazy mist enveloped them, obscuring the words.

He flicked his finger, and the bamboo skewer fell steadily back into the flower basket, where it was blocked by a snow-white pear blossom.

Gu Pingsheng was the instructor for this year's new disciples, so his position was only slightly below that of the sect leader, Shen Hongxue.

Holding the flower slip, Yang Ruo asked curiously, "Master, Junior Sister Ning, Junior Sister Xiao Qiu, Junior Sister Xu, and Ke Rong have all made it into the top ten. Whose name will you write on the flower slip?"

Gu Pingsheng raised his hand, and Yang Ruo quickly handed over the flower slips with both hands, craning her neck to peek, but she saw nothing.

"It's only a few quarters of an hour away, why is Master being so mysterious?" he muttered to himself.

Below, the sect's senior disciple, Li Jinzhen, distributes rewards to the top ten inner disciples.

"Congratulations, Junior Sister Ning, on winning the championship." Li Jinzhen congratulated her with a smile and personally handed the championship reward to Ning Fusang.

The champion receives the most generous reward: a bottle each of Rejuvenation Pills and Rejuvenation Pills, containing nine pills of each. The Breakthrough Pill, which helps in breaking through realms, is even more precious, with only one available.

Besides the pills, there were also three bottles of sword-nurturing spring water, a palm-sized sword-grinding stone with a blue frost pattern from Baoshen Mountain, three thousand spirit stones, three thousand sect contribution points, and a token.

The token contains three points of spiritual light, signifying that holding this token allows one to enter Cloud Spirit Valley for cultivation three times.

Ning Fusang accepted her reward and said, "Thank you, Senior Sister Jinzhen."

Li Jinzhen nodded slightly, walked to the side, and handed the second-place prize to Shen Tu Lei. "Thank you, Senior Sister."

The thirty disciples behind them looked on with envy and whispered among themselves.

"I never expected that Senior Sister Jinzhen would personally distribute the rewards this year. If I had known, I would have worked even harder!"

"I really want to hear Senior Sister Jinzhen congratulate me! This is the hidden reward for being among the top ten in the inner sect."

Jiang Xin stood in the crowd and slightly raised her eyes. She saw a woman dressed in plain white brocade, like a jade tree and snow-covered flowers, with a noble and pure spirit, free from worldly thoughts.

Ordinary inner disciples receive only one thousand spirit stones and one thousand sect contribution points as rewards, nothing else.

Jiang Xin picked up the storage bag from the tray and gripped it tightly. She had never had so many spirit stones before. She thought she would be very happy, but she found that when she held a thousand spirit stones in her hand, she felt unusually calm.

After the rewards were distributed, the highlight of the ceremony began – the selection of a master by drawing lots.

Ning Fusang looked at the flower slip in her hand, didn't think much of it, and quickly returned it.

Shen Tu Lei glanced at her in surprise, seemingly not expecting her to make a decision so quickly. However, Shen Tu Lei understood; generally speaking, new disciples who made it into the top ten would choose to be taught by their own instructors.

Therefore, she doesn't need to think too much.

Shen Tu Lei guessed that the name left on Ning Fusang Flower slip was Gu Pingsheng's.

He withdrew his gaze and carefully considered which elder's title he should write. In fact, he could choose the teacher who had guided him back then, but so many years had passed, and that affection had long since faded away. He still needed to consider it carefully.

After pondering for a moment, Shen Tu Lei finally wrote down the elder's title he wished to become an apprentice on the flower slip.

Even if he wrote down the name of this elder, he might not get what he wanted, as the elder's name might not be on the flower slip.

However, when it came to the second round of choosing a teacher, his options became clearer.

The ten flower tokens were taken back and placed in front of the sect leader, Shen Hongxue.

Yang Ruo nervously rubbed his hands: "Master, will Junior Sister Ning choose you?"

Liang Heng smiled and looked at him: "I didn't expect that Junior Brother Yang Ruo and Junior Sister Ning's relationship would become so good."

He remembered that Yang Ruo used to be reluctant to see Ning Fusang.

Gu Pingsheng retorted, "How do you know that her name is on my flower slip?"

Yang Ruo was slightly taken aback. Oh right, he still didn't know whose name was on his master's flower slip.

"Master, is Junior Sister Ning's name on your flower slip?"

Gu Pingsheng straightened his sleeves and said calmly, "No."

"Ning Fusang's flower divination slip will not bear my name, so why should I waste this one?"

If there were a one in ten chance that Ning Fusang would choose him, Gu Pingsheng would be willing to take her as his disciple.

She is indeed a promising candidate for swordsmanship.

She possesses both talent and diligence. If Ning Fusang were willing to become her disciple, it would only be a matter of time before she surpasses her two students, Liang Heng and Yang Ruo.

Gu Pingsheng had been with her for three years and knew that she wouldn't choose him. But if Gu Pingsheng were to guess, he really wouldn't be able to guess which elder's name was on Ning Fusang's flower slip.

Yang Ruo scratched his ear in confusion: "How does Master know that Junior Sister Ning won't choose you? She's very respectful to Master."

Gu Pingsheng looked at him like he was an idiot and shook his head helplessly.

Liang Heng said, "The results of the flower divination will be announced soon, junior brother, just listen up."

Yang Ruo had no choice but to suppress her many questions and nod.

Shen Hongxue picked up the first flower stick on the left, looked down at it, her expression changed slightly, then she flipped the flower stick over and gradually frowned.

This strange expression left everyone puzzled.

"Which elder's name is on the flower slip? Why is Sect Leader Shen in such a difficult position?"

"I'm itching like a cat is scratching me. If only I could take over the task of announcing the results of the flower divination in the future."

"Go away, if anyone should be doing this, it should be Elder Gu."

"..."

Listening to the elders arguing, Shen Hongxue sighed, clutched the flower token, and vanished from the spot in one step.

"Hmm? Why did Sect Leader Chen leave?"

"Having cultivated the Tao for many years, my worldly desires have died, but this curiosity is truly impossible to extinguish. I am now genuinely curious about what is written on the flower divination slip."

"Elder Gu, Ning Fusang is your student, didn't she leave your name?"

A beautiful woman in a purple brocade dress retrieved her flower token and said quietly, "This flower token has her name on it. It looks like it's going to be wasted."

Despite the pressure from all sides, Gu Pingsheng remained calm and said, "Please stop asking. I truly do not know which elder's name Ning Fusang will retain."

He revealed to everyone, "The name on my fortune slip is that of another student. He won't be competing with you all for the top disciple position, so don't worry."

Only then did everyone let Gu Pingsheng go and look towards the square.

The man, dressed in a gray-blue robe that fluttered in the wind and wearing a dark red jade crown, stood solemnly before Ning Fusang and asked in a gentle voice, "Why did you not leave your name on the flower slip?"

Upon hearing this, Shen Tu Lei, Xu Qiu, and several disciples behind them all showed a hint of surprise in their eyes and looked at Ning Fusang.

The young woman stood tall and graceful, like a lone pine tree on a cliff, and replied neither humbly nor arrogantly: "Among the thirty-three peaks, there is no sword path that I seek."

Ning Fusang's thirty-three peaks encompass all the elders, both those present and those absent. Therefore, it wasn't because her desired master wasn't from within the sect, but rather that she was unwilling to take anyone from within the sect as her master.

Shen Tu Lei's eyes widened in disbelief. Had she gone mad? How could she be so arrogant, daring to claim that none of the thirty-three peaks of swordsmanship were worthy of her attention?

Shen Hongxue was surprised by her answer, but she wasn't angry. Instead, she gently advised, "The treatment of personal disciples and inner disciples is different. Have you thought it through? Do you really want to give up this reward?"

Ning Fusang did not hesitate: "This disciple has thought it through very clearly and is willing to give up the reward for becoming a disciple."

Her decisiveness, without even a moment's hesitation, made Shen Hongxue feel somewhat troubled.

It would be inappropriate for the champion of the outer sect competition not to become a personal disciple. However, this was Ning Fusang's reward, and she certainly had the right to choose to give it up.

The fact that the sect has never had this precedent does not mean that it is against the rules.

After thinking for a moment, Shen Hongxue proposed a compromise.

(End of this chapter)