Fusang Sword Heart Diagram

Chapter 83 Hidden Sword Pavilion, Su'a Sword

"The lineage of True Person Qixuan of Tianxin Peak has been severed. You only need to be affiliated with Tianxin Peak and retain the title of a direct disciple. How about that?"

Master Qixuan was seriously injured and perished because he could not survive the Heavenly Tribulation. Two of his disciples lost their lives during a secret realm expedition thirty years ago, and Tianxin Peak lost its lineage for thirty years as a result.

Tianxin Peak currently has no new peak master. If Ning Fusang were to join Tianxin Peak, it would be equivalent to having a new peak master.

But as everyone knows, this "peak master" is just an empty title, without any real power; it's just something to sound good.

The biggest difference between a personal disciple and an ordinary inner disciple is that they have a powerful "backer," which brings resources and connections. Obviously, this brings far more benefits than an empty title of "peak master."

They wanted to become direct disciples because they wanted to receive guidance from their master in their spiritual practice.

But Ning Fusang wanted to follow her own path of swordsmanship, and for her, Tianxin Peak, which had already fallen and whose lineage had been severed, was just what she wanted.

After a moment's thought, she replied, "This disciple is willing."

Shen Hongxue continued, "In this way, although you retain the title of your personal disciple, it is still somewhat lacking."

He thought for a moment and said, "How about this, you can make a request within reasonable limits."

Shen Tu Lei glanced sideways at her, thinking to himself, "I didn't expect the sect leader to be so easy to talk to, even offering to compensate her. I wonder what Ning Fusang will ask for. But no matter what she asks for, nothing beats taking a sect elder as her master."

On the other side, Xiao Qiu blinked and looked at Ning Fusang curiously.

Ning Fusang quickly replied: "Reporting to the Sect Leader, this disciple wishes to go to the sect's scripture library every day and stay for an hour."

Unlike the outer sect's library, the main peak of Kaiyang Peak's scripture library is not open to disciples free of charge; entry requires a deduction of contribution points. Furthermore, viewing complete cultivation technique jade slips also incurs contribution points.

The library houses miscellaneous books, including classics on mountains and rivers, as well as some low-level and unorthodox techniques, such as purification techniques, dust-sweeping techniques, fire spirit spells, and water-avoidance spells.

The Scripture Repository houses various Taoist scriptures and cultivation techniques, whose value is incomparable, and naturally, entry and borrowing are not permitted at will. The Scripture Repository is even more heavily guarded than the Sword Repository.

Because disciples frequently enter and exit the Scripture Repository, the Sword Storage Pavilion is only open when swords are being stored away, and once the outer sect competition concludes and inner sect disciples choose their spirit swords. Otherwise, it is essentially closed.

Ning Fusang's request was not excessive, and Shen Hongxue immediately agreed.

He returned to the platform and continued the process.

Everything went smoothly afterward. Two disciples, in the first round, drew both flower lots and were accepted into the tutelage of their preferred elders.

The remaining seven people will be re-selected in the second round.

Yang Ruo stared longingly at the fortune sticks in the flower basket, her gaze shifting back and forth between the sticks and Gu Pingsheng: "Master, no one chose you!"

Gu Pingsheng: ...

He frowned, still unable to figure out what went wrong.

Was his hint not clear enough back then?
"Master, the selection of masters is now over. Can I see the names on the flower slips?" Yang Ruo asked with her clear eyes.

Gu Pingsheng waved his hand, indicating that he could do as he pleased.

Yang Ruo stepped forward, retrieved the flower slip, touched it, and withdrew the spell. Two large characters appeared in his eyes—Xu Qiu.

Gu Pingsheng left her name on the flower slip.

In fact, Gu Pingsheng had met Xu Qiu privately after the outer sect competition ended. She had joined the sect through the Star Sword Token, and Gu Pingsheng had been instructed from the beginning to pay close attention to her and Xu Jianjia.

Xu Qiu's inability to break through the fifth level was, in general, a potential problem, as it might affect her performance in the outer sect competition. Gu Pingsheng only told her about this after the outer sect competition ended and the rankings were determined.

His intention was to have Xu Qiu become his disciple, in which case he would take better care of her. However, Gu Pingsheng did not expect that after learning about this, Xu Qiu would still choose another elder.

This puzzled not only Gu Pingsheng, but also the other sect elders. Four of the top ten inner disciples were Gu's students, yet none of them chose him.

Even the usually oblivious Yang Ruo could feel the probing and comforting gazes coming from all directions. He opened his mouth and said, "Master, even though no one has chosen you, you can still choose your disciple!"

The sect elders can choose disciples from the remaining thirty disciples, accepting them as personal disciples, registered disciples, or unregistered disciples.

Yang Ruo glanced around, about to mention Jiang Xin's name, when the purple-clad woman beside him, Master Ziwan of Jade Branch Peak, spoke up: "Sect Leader, how about assigning that youngest girl to me as a disciple?"

Ziwan saw that she had broken through to the mid-stage of the second realm at the age of fourteen, which showed her good talent and potential. She thought she would first take her as a nominal disciple and then consider taking her as a personal disciple after observing her character.

Ziwan wasn't the only one interested in Jiang Xin, but since she had spoken first, the elders who were a step behind had no choice but to swallow their words.

Why are you always a step too slow when it comes to recruiting apprentices?

Yang Ruo kept her mouth tightly shut and silently glanced at her master Gu Pingsheng and her senior brother Liang Heng.

Shen Hongxue did not agree directly, but looked at Gu Pingsheng. Although she did not speak, everyone understood what she meant. The sect leader was just short of asking Gu Pingsheng directly, "Do you want this disciple? If not, give him to Master Ziwan."

Gu Pingsheng smiled faintly and said calmly, "Since Master Ziwan finds Jiang Xin pleasing to the eye, how can I, an old man, steal her away?"

Ziwan breathed a sigh of relief, and a smile appeared on her beautiful face.

Although Yang Ruo was somewhat disappointed that he wouldn't have a junior sister, he was happy that Jiang Xin could become Master Ziwan's disciple.

He was simple-minded; he just thought that since everyone had entered the inner sect, if Jiang Xin was the only one among the five who hadn't become a personal disciple and didn't have a master, she would definitely feel a sense of loss.

Now that Master Ziwan has accepted her as his disciple, it can be considered a happy event for everyone.

Yang Ruo knew that the elders usually accepted nominal disciples from among them, and that if they were to choose their own disciples in the future, they would be selected from among them.

After the master selection ceremony concluded, the group headed towards the Hidden Sword Pavilion.

Several disciples stayed behind to tidy up the area. With the dust-sweeping spell, the flower petals on the ground curled up and gathered in a pile.

The ribbons hanging on the pillars were also torn down and put away.

A female disciple, while collecting flowers, saw pear blossoms that were snow-white, trembling, and exquisitely beautiful. She thought of taking them back to put in a vase later. As she picked out the pear blossoms, a flower stick fell out.

The woman glanced around, then picked up the flower slip. The magic on it had dissipated, revealing neat and dignified handwriting that read "Ning Fusang".

*
Hidden Sword Pavilion.

The process of entering the Hidden Sword Pavilion is very complicated. Generally speaking, you need to register three days in advance. Shen Hongxue had already registered at the Hidden Sword Pavilion when the outer sect competition started. All the complicated procedures were handled by Li Jinzhen. So everyone only needs to register their name to enter the Hidden Sword Pavilion and choose a spirit sword.

The gates of the Hidden Sword Pavilion were wide open. Inside, there was a spacious hall. At the corner, nine steps led up to another door, which led to the real Hidden Sword Pavilion.

The other disciples waited at the bottom of the steps, and could only enter after the first ten had chosen their spirit swords.

"The sect's Sword Pavilion contains tens of thousands of spirit swords, ranging from the first rank to the ninth rank. All of them are sealed, so it is impossible to determine the rank of a spirit sword from its aura. Therefore, what kind of spirit sword you can choose depends entirely on luck. Just remember one thing: do not touch it until you are completely sure that you want this sword."

Shen Hongxue reminded everyone of the precautions to take when choosing a spirit sword.

After receiving a signal from Shen Hongxue, the two gatekeepers took out their tokens and embedded them into the recesses on the door. The simple and unadorned door then emitted rings of spiritual light.

The two formed a complex hand seal, their lips moving as they silently chanted ancient incantations. A spiritual light, like water, slowly stirred, forming a reverse vortex that gradually expanded. "Go."

The old woman guarding the gate had her eyelids drooping and didn't look up, speaking calmly.

Ning Fusang, Shen Tu Lei, Xu Qiu, and nine others entered the passage one after another. As their figures disappeared, the spiritual light on the door also vanished instantly.

The blinding light made Ning Fusang close her eyes slightly. When she opened them again, she was already under a vast starry sky.

Ning Fusang looked around but didn't see anyone else, guessing that everyone had been separated after entering the Hidden Sword Pavilion.

She seemed to be walking on water, with each step creating a soft, murmuring sound.

There are no sword racks of various sizes in the Hidden Sword Pavilion, nor are there any swords floating around. There are only stars in the sky, or rather, clusters of light.

Some clusters of light are brighter, while others are dim and without light. They vary in size and brightness, forming this mysterious starry sky.

Inside the ball of light was the sealed spirit sword.

Ning Fusang walked and stopped intermittently, feeling a slight heat in her palms, as if something was about to emerge.

It is the Sword Heart Diagram.

It sensed the whereabouts of the Su'a sword.

I never expected that Su'a Sword would actually be in the Hidden Sword Pavilion. Are the people of the Southern Star Sword Sect really not afraid that it will be taken away by someone else?

Ning Fusang suppressed the Sword Heart Diagram with all her might. In her sea of ​​consciousness, Qian Yuan's voice rang out: "Fusang, there is a slight disturbance in the Sword Heart Diagram. What happened?"

In fact, even though Qianyuan lived in the Sword Heart Diagram, it still didn't understand what the Sword Heart Diagram was. Qianyuan only vaguely knew that it seemed to be a talisman.
Ning Fusang asked, "As a dragon, you have a strong defense. Can you tolerate this bit of violent sword energy?"

Qian Yuan remained silent and simply hummed in agreement.

Ning Fusang then severed the connection with it, closed her eyes, and sensed the spirit sword.

Countless orbs of light, like fireflies, flew towards her, but all stopped three inches away. Ning Fusang raised her hand, and as she approached one of the orbs of light, it flickered excitedly a few times, seemingly very happy.

Ning Fusang raised an eyebrow slightly and said calmly, "Go."

The ball of light dimmed instantly and flew away in a flash.

The surrounding small orbs of light swayed a few times, then flew away and returned to the sky.

There were still many orbs of light around Ning Fusang. She finally stopped in front of one orb, which was neither bright and high-profile nor dark and reserved.

Upon reaching out and touching it, the halo disappeared, revealing a plain-colored longsword.

Outside the Hidden Sword Pavilion, both the gatekeeper and Shen Hongxue looked inside.

Under the starlight, a refined figure materialized. Ning Fusang bowed respectfully and said, "Sect Leader."

The man said gently, "Don't be nervous, I'm just a wisp of divine thought."

He glanced at him sideways and asked, "You chose this sword, didn't you?"

Ning Fusang nodded naturally, "Yes."

She chose Su Ajian.

Ning Fusang wondered if Shen Hongxue's appearance at this moment was to stop her from taking Su Ajian away.
If Shen Hongxue asked her to change her sword, she would have no choice but to do so. Even if she never had the chance to openly enter the Hidden Sword Pavilion again.

Shen Hongxue asked, "Do you know the name of this sword?"

His tone was unreadable, making it impossible to guess what he was thinking. Ning Fusang replied without changing his expression, "I haven't had time to look yet."

She wasn't lying; the fact that she didn't have time to see the sword's name doesn't contradict the fact that she knew it was the Su'a Sword.

With a flick of her finger, Shen Hongxue sent the longsword fluttering and swaying as it fell toward Ning Fusang.

“This sword is called Su’a, the treasured sword of the Southern Star Sword Sect,” Shen Hongxue said slowly. “It has been stored in the Sword Pavilion for ten thousand years and has not seen the light of day. Countless people have come to the Sword Pavilion, but none of them have found it.”

“You are very lucky, and you are also destined to be with Su’a Sword. It has chosen you.”

The selection of swords at Cangjian Pavilion is both a matter of people choosing swords and swords choosing people.

This is Su Ajian's choice, and Shen Hongxue will not interfere too much.

Moreover, this is also a rule of the sect. Every inner disciple has the opportunity to come to the Sword Pavilion and take a sword away.

Regardless of rank.

In fact, both Shen Hongxue and Duanmu Meiqing hoped that Li Jinzhen could find the sword. As the senior sister of the Nanxing Sword Sect, she was the most suitable person to wield the Su'a Sword.

Li Jinzhen had visited the Hidden Sword Pavilion, but all he found was a ninth-tier spirit sword, He Xing.

Ning Fusang was slightly surprised after hearing so much from Shen Hongxue, but no matter what, he didn't stop her from taking Su'a Sword away, so the situation was much better than she had thought.

Suddenly, Shen Hongxue changed the subject: "However, with your current cultivation level, it would cause you a lot of trouble if you were to wield the Su'a Sword."

“I have placed three seals on the sword. When you break through to the Knowledge Realm, one seal will be unlocked. When you reach the Master Realm and can protect this Su’a Sword, all the seals will be unlocked.”

The fact that the sect leader of the Southern Star Sword Sect had broken through to the Tong Realm had long been speculated within the sect. In reality, only Shen Hongxue himself and Duanmu Meiqing probably knew what realm he was in.

When Ning Fusang heard that the third seal set by Shen Hongxue could only be broken when she reached the Tongjing realm, she assumed that Shen Hongxue was at the twelfth realm, and only a Tongjing realm expert could set such a seal.

Shen Hongxue smiled, cupped her hands, and casually bowed in one direction, saying, "Uncle-Master, please lend your junior nephew a hand."

Ning Fusang was startled, but at the same time relieved that he had suppressed the Sword Heart Diagram and prevented it from appearing in the Hidden Sword Pavilion.

A phantom figure with an air of otherworldly grace appeared behind Shen Hongxue, but did not make a move for the time being. Su Ajian flew into the air and had its first seal broken.

When the third seal was reached, the old man lent his power to Shen Hongxue, and a solid seal was formed within the Su'a Sword.

Then, the old man's figure vanished. Ning Fusang realized that it was just a wisp of divine thought, likely at the Ming Realm level of cultivation. Therefore, the remaining divine thought could still set up a seal of the Tong Realm strength. However, once the power of the divine thought was used up, it would cease to exist.

Shen Hongxue returned the sword to Ning Fusang.

"Right now it's just an ordinary sixth-tier spirit sword, you can give it a new name."

Ning Fusang understood what Shen Hongxue meant; he meant that she could take out and use this sword in public.

No one would have imagined that Su'a, the sword that guards the mountain, would appear openly before everyone.

(End of this chapter)