Embers of Sword

Chapter 669 Call Me Master
"Mountain Master."

"Uncle Master."

As Xie Xuanyi left Jin'ao Peak, disciples kept bowing to him along the way.

The Great Sui Sword Palace is now a pile of rubble. The previous battle was extremely devastating, with 70% of the great formation damaged. Fortunately, the casualties were not high. As long as people are alive, there is hope.

At a time when everything was in need of rebuilding, the disciples of the various peaks no longer went out to carry out missions, but instead gathered at the main sect's mountain gate. Si Qi led the people of Zhenyin Peak to repair the array patterns everywhere. With Zhou Zhiren dead, Xiaochun Mountain was "leaderless," so it was just right to hand it over to him and let him follow Si Qi's orders.

Xie Xuanyi returned to Lotus Peak.

This main peak has been deserted and uninhabited for ten years.

Now every step of the stone steps has been cleaned.

In front of the bamboo building on Lotus Peak.

A figure dressed in black had been waiting for some time. Huang Su stood with his sword in hand, eyes closed, seemingly resting.

She was waiting for Xie Xuanyi to leave Jin'ao Peak.

"Little junior sister."

Xie Xuanyi looked at Huang Su with a complicated expression.

He hesitated for a moment.

He finally uttered that title, ten years overdue.

Huang Su opened her eyes.

She gazed at the young face not far away with a similarly complicated expression...

Ten years have passed.

Senior Brother Xuan Yi hadn't aged; instead, he had become even younger. His face was exactly the same as when they first met, as she remembered it.

Huang Su was just a child back then.

Living in a remote, desolate corner, they suffered greatly from the attacks of bandits and the ravages of demons.

It was Senior Brother Xuan Yi who pulled her out of the sea of ​​blood and brought her back to the Sword Palace.

This is a life-saving act, and also a debt of gratitude for being recognized and appreciated.

"..."

Huang Su took a deep breath to calm herself down.

next moment!
With a swish!
The sound of a flying sword being drawn suddenly rang out in the open space in front of the bamboo house. Huang Su abruptly drew her sword and rushed forward, stepping on the ground.

A flash of cold light appeared.

Xie Xuanyi tilted his head slightly, dodging the sword strike with perfect accuracy.

The two passed each other.

Huang Su stomped on the purple bamboo, left, then returned, and drew his sword once more.

Xie Xuanyi, who stood still, did not dodge this time. Instead, he stretched out two fingers, placed them in front of him, and pinched the blade of the long sword with a twang!
Sparks fly!

This sword strike was quite forceful, but once the tip of the sword was caught between Xie Xuanyi's two fingers, it could not advance an inch. It must be said that Huang Su's cultivation has progressed rapidly over the years, and he already has the strength of the fifteenth level of Yin God. However, he is still far from being able to shake Xie Xuanyi's "Martial Arts Divine Embryo".

Sword energy burst forth everywhere in the purple bamboo forest.

Flavonoids continue to exert their influence.

Xie Xuanyi remained unmoved, his longsword bent, and the tip and blade almost collided.

Xie Xuanyi tapped his fingers lightly, merely making a gesture to release the force.

Huang Su was so shocked by the powerful energy he had unleashed that he was forced to retreat, and it took him more than ten pushes to regain his balance.

"I still can't beat you..."

Huang Su sighed, revealing a look of regret and disappointment.

Back when I was practicing at Lotus Peak.

The two often practiced their skills together.

Of course, there's nothing to fight about... When Xie Xuanyi was at the Yin Spirit Realm, Huang Su had only just established her foundation. Even with Xie Xuanyi's advancement, the two were not even in the same league. However, Huang Su refused to admit defeat, so Xie Xuanyi told her that whenever and wherever they met, Huang Su could "unreasonably" draw her sword and launch a direct attack. If Xie Xuanyi took a step back, Huang Su would be considered the victor.

In order to win this duel, Huang Su practiced his cultivation relentlessly.

Later.

She finally condensed her own Dao realm and became a Yin deity. Wherever she went, people would respectfully address her as Venerable One.

But she would never see her senior brother in black again.

ten years.

A whole decade.

Huang Su meditated and cultivated in seclusion on Lotus Peak for ten years.

She had initially thought those ten years would be incredibly long, but seeing Xie Xuanyi again now, she felt that ten years was very short...

It turns out that the suffering and torment have already passed.

Ten years is but a fleeting moment.

My senior brother is still alive.

Compared to this news, what does it matter that my senior brother lied to me...?

Swish!
Thinking of this, Huang Su drew his sword again, but this time it was no longer for the sake of a contest, but contained a wisp of resentment.

Since you came back alive.

You should tell yourself that right away!
He's hiding it from me, lying to me... Does this mean my senior brother doesn't trust me?!

The sword flashed across the long forest.

This sword strike was neither faster nor more ruthless than before, but Xie Xuanyi still failed to catch it.

The sword energy pierced the shoulder, penetrating the skin.

"?!"

Huang Su stood there dumbfounded, staring at her senior brother in disbelief.

Xie Xuanyi withdrew his Martial God Embryo and the Annihilation Realm. He calmly stretched out his palm and gently grasped the wisp of sword energy.

Fresh blood flowed down the sword's edge.

"Brother, I..."

Huang Su was pale, completely unprepared for such a scene.

She knew very well that with Xie Xuanyi's strength, he could easily knock the sword away with a flick of his sleeve.

But Xie Xuanyi did not do that.

"No need to feel guilty."

Xie Xuanyi smiled and said, "I deliberately didn't avoid it. That way, Junior Sister should feel better."

These past ten years.

During the ten years that he disappeared without a trace and died in Beihai, many people suffered greatly.

Huang Su, Qi Lie, Si Qi...

Jiang Miaoyin...

Xie Xuanyi felt indebted to these people.

Now that he has returned alive, he should naturally offer compensation.

"Are you crazy...?"

Huang Su scolded him angrily, but her eyes were full of heartache: "Your previous sword strike couldn't have hurt you, you could have just dodged this one!"

"This little injury is nothing."

Xie Xuanyi shook his head, still smiling.

A click.

He slowly pulled out the thin wisp of sword energy that had pierced his shoulder. The bleeding quickly stopped, and under the nourishment of the Dao of Life and the vapors of the Undying Spring, the wound scabbed over and formed a scar. Then the scab fell off, and everything returned to normal.

Huang Su was stunned.

Senior brother's "Life Dao Realm" has actually reached such a level?
She felt that something was wrong.

She had also witnessed a great deal of the Dao power of the Yin God Realm.

My senior brother seems different from the others.

Although the "realm of life" is extremely rare, only one Zen master has achieved it in the three hundred years of the two dynasties.

But it can't be that incredible, can it?
The sword wound healed in just a few breaths...

"This bamboo house is nice, just like it was back then."

After Xie Xuanyi withdrew his sword energy, he walked towards the bamboo building by himself. With his hands behind his back, he said softly, "Lotus Peak is unusually clean today. Has someone cleaned it?"

"Your apprentice swept it."

Huang Su followed behind, speaking in an annoyed tone.

"My apprentice?"

Xie Xuanyi frowned.

This time, it was his turn to be stunned.

"Of course, it's that one from Forget-Worry Island."

Huang Su scoffed, "You haven't forgotten, have you? This little guy came here specifically to become your disciple... The tricks you used to fool him before won't work now. The entire Great Sui Sword Palace knows that Duan Zhao is your disciple, who travels with you and is your true master."

"..."

Xie Xuanyi's expression became subtle and strange. At the very beginning...

He got along quite well with Duan Zhao under the identity of "Xie Zhen".

This little guy is hardworking and conscientious, doing a lot of odd jobs like serving tea and water, and there's really nothing wrong with that... So Xie Xuanyi likes to take him with him wherever he goes. One reason is that Duan Zhao has a special identity, and at that time Xie Xuanyi's cultivation had not yet recovered, so having an extra Wind and Thunder Bracelet can be considered mutual support. If they really encounter any trouble, the names of those two from Forget-Worry Island will still be useful.

on the other hand.

He genuinely liked this kid... Although Duan Zhao came from Forget-Worry Island, he truly loved swordsmanship and had a high level of comprehension. With him by his side, he could easily improve with just a few pointers. It could be said that if Duan Zhao continued his training, he could become a one-in-a-million genius in the "second sword path".

However, Xie Xuanyi gradually realized that something was wrong.

This kid is really shameless. Although he keeps calling himself "Little Mountain Master," he secretly calls Deng Baiyi "Little Master's Wife."

Damn it.

What does "little master's wife" mean?
When did I become Duan Zhao's master?

When did Deng Baiyi become his Daoist partner?

"Mountain Master!"

As my thoughts raced...

A familiar shout suddenly rang out not far from the purple bamboo forest.

Xie Xuanyi turned around and saw a figure rushing over, excitedly hugging him.

Who else could it be but Duan Zhao?
"Alright, alright... that's enough."

Xie Xuanyi sighed inwardly, and after a few breaths, he stretched out a hand with a look of disgust and pushed it away.

To say this kid is stupid is an understatement; he's not really stupid.

I know to change how I address you.

They know to call themselves the "mountain lord".

To say this kid is clever is an understatement; he's not clever at all.

Who can hide those little thoughts from?
Even though the way they've already changed the way they address each other, why not change it all at once?

"He got up at dawn today, saying he wanted to clean up the bamboo house properly, and he's been busy with it ever since."

Huang Su spoke up from the side, and the implication was all too clear.

"Aha..."

Duan Zhao didn't know how to respond or claim credit. He just stood there, scratching his head blankly, chuckling to himself, and looking at Xie Xuanyi with eyes full of joy.

The previous great battle.

Lotus Peak appears to be intact, but in reality, the opposite is true.

The Lotus Forbidden Land was the site of a great battle between two celestial beings... The thousand-year-old talisman array was destroyed in an instant, and many places suffered damage.

Xie Xuanyi could tell that the bamboo building and the stone steps had actually been reinforced.

This will probably take a lot of effort.

"Did you do all this?"

Helpless, Xie Xuanyi could only point to the bamboo building and then to the long steps.

"Many years ago, my mother taught me some talisman techniques."

Duan Zhao nodded: "Repairing these array patterns isn't too difficult, but this isn't just my achievement... Miss Xu also helped."

"Miss Xu?"

Xie Xuanyi looked further into the Purple Bamboo Forest.

He noticed this when he climbed the mountain today; Lotus Peak was not deserted.

"My senior brother recently saved the lives of many cultivators from the Xu family in the Southern Frontier... Therefore, the Xu family has come to visit today to express their gratitude in person."

Huang Su lowered his voice and said slowly, "In principle... the Great Sui Sword Palace does not receive guests. Only a very few mountain peak cultivators visit and are able to enter the main sect. However, the Xu family is an exception."

Although the Xu family of Bingzhou was a powerful clan in the region, they did not have a Yang God in charge of them.

It would only take a word for the Great Sword Palace to shut them out.

But Huang Su did not do that.

The first reason... Her disciple, Xu Nianning, is the daughter of the Xu family patriarch, and if nothing unexpected happens, she will become the new patriarch of the Xu family.

There is another reason.

The relationship between Xu Nianning and Duan Zhao is rather unusual.

"No need for further explanation, I understand."

Xie Xuanyi's divine sense swept over to the purple bamboo forest.

Not far away, under the shade of a tree, several cultivators from the Xu family were drinking tea and waiting.

The head of the Xu family and the female Yin spirit who went to fight in the Southern Frontier both sensed this divine thought and cast their greetings.

Separated by a bamboo grove.

Xie Xuanyi nodded slightly in acknowledgment.

The two sides were in perfect sync, and neither of them spoke.

The Xu family patriarch and the female spirit continued drinking tea, silently waiting under the shade of the tree.

they know.

Since the Great Eagle Sword Palace did not refuse the Xu family entry.

Then they will definitely be able to meet Xie Xuanyi. If Xie Xuanyi doesn't come, it means something is wrong. They just need to wait a little longer.

"You're quite considerate of others, aren't you?"

Xie Xuanyi raised an eyebrow and said jokingly, "Others do three parts of the work and want to claim seven parts of the credit. But you, after all that work, instead of thinking about getting anything for yourself, you're already shouting for others."

"Senior Sister Xu is none other than..."

Duan Zhao paused for a moment, then spoke instinctively.

"Ah."

Xie Xuanyi chuckled and asked teasingly, "If it's none other than yourself, then who is it?"

"Is she your senior sister...?"

Duan Zhao's voice suddenly softened, his confidence clearly waning.

The young man's face flushed red, and he wanted to say something more, but he clearly couldn't continue. This kid wasn't a shy or timid person at all; his usual impetuousness had completely vanished at this moment.

"Some things don't need to be hidden; just say what's on your mind."

Xie Xuanyi gave a brief suggestion and said calmly, "Since Senior Sister Xu is your senior sister, then you should call her Senior Sister openly and naturally."

Duan Zhao looked up, bewildered and somewhat confused.

"Same thing."

Xie Xuanyi smiled and asked, "What should you call me now?"

"I used to call you Little Mountain Lord..."

Duan Zhao scratched his head, struggling to figure out the purpose of Xie Xuanyi's words, and then cautiously said, "I corrected myself, I just called you 'Mountain Lord'..."

Ten years ago.

Xie Xuanyi is the master of Lotus Peak.

After Xie Xuanyi died in battle in the North Sea.

Huang Su took over the position and became the new mountain lord... Unless Xie Xuanyi comes back to life, no one can shake this position. Even if "Xie Zhen" becomes the master of Xuan Shui Cave, he can only be called the junior mountain lord. In Duan Zhao's eyes, this is a very serious matter, so he has always taken it seriously.

Since Xie Xuanyi is not dead now.

Then the title of "mountain lord" must naturally be returned.

He handled it very well.

However, it's somewhat out of place.

"idiot."

Hearing this, even Huang Su couldn't help but speak up.

She stretched out her palm and, with a chop-like motion, sliced ​​Duan Zhao's head in an annoyed manner, then probed again indirectly: "Think carefully, what do you really want to call that Senior Sister Xu?"

A thud.

"Uncle-Master Huang Su, you've really misunderstood—"

Duan Zhao covered his head, his face flushed, and said anxiously, "Although I like Senior Sister Xu quite a bit, I have no extraordinary thoughts. I have never thought of calling Senior Sister Xu 'wife'!"

"..."

Huang Su fell completely silent.

The summit of Lotus Peak was deathly silent.

Over at the bamboo grove, a coughing fit occurred under the shade of the trees.

The head of the Xu family nearly choked on his tea halfway through, his face darkening as he remained speechless.

Xie Xuanyi sighed helplessly.

"so……"

He crouched down, looked into the young man's eyes, and asked, word by word.

"Do you want to call me master?"

(End of this chapter)