Sword Sect Outer Sect

Chapter 342 Lingyang Riverside
The prosperity of a family is no easy feat; it requires the continuous dedication of generations of family members.

It requires the right timing and location, the unity of the people, luck, and walking on thin ice.

However, it is very easy for a family to decline.

The family lost its pillar, or it offended someone it shouldn't have, or it was being targeted by others.

The Nangong family is now heading towards decline.

In fact, the Nangong family's ability to establish itself in Jiangxian Pass and develop steadily for so many years is certainly not solely due to the legacy of a Golden Core cultivator.

Many people speculate that the Nangong family has a Golden Core cultivator in charge.

However, Nangong never mentioned this matter directly, leaving those with ulterior motives to speculate.

In fact, the Nangong family does have a Golden Core cultivator who is kept secret, but there is only one.

Moreover, this person was not actually a member of the Nangong clan; in fact, he was just a servant of the Nangong clan from many years ago.

The patriarch and elders of the Nangong family were aware of the situation regarding this non-family cultivator.

This man was born into humble circumstances and was looked down upon by others. However, the young lady of the Nangong family hundreds of years ago was very fond of him and believed that he would surely achieve great things in the future.

Although no romantic relationship between master and servant occurred, the young lady at that time provided him with considerable financial support.

Later, he left the Southern Palace and ventured alone into the Eastern Wilderness and the Central Region, after which he disappeared without a trace.

Until one year, the Nangong family encountered a great calamity. In a moment of urgency, he intervened slightly and easily resolved the family crisis.

It turned out that he had already returned to Jiangxian Pass and had become a Golden Core cultivator.

However, the young lady of the Nangong family had already passed away by then.

He then disguised himself as a servant in the Nangong household and guarded the former residence of that young lady.

However, several years ago, this patriarch from another family had summoned Nangong Ming and others for a talk.

He claimed that he was also nearing the end of his life.

Nangong Ming felt bitter and could only lament his precarious situation.

As the saying goes, "When things reach their peak, they must decline; when things reach their lowest point, they must rise again." The development of things in this world is ultimately a cycle of ups and downs.

No family can prosper forever; there will always be low points.

Nangong Ming was naturally aware of this.

However, during this low point, first the demonic cultivators invaded the Chu Kingdom, and then the Qin family of Southern Chu targeted them at every turn.

Now, even the pillar of the family, that non-family Golden Core ancestor, is old and frail.

As the head of the Nangong family, he can't hold the line alone.

Finally, after discussions and planning among the elders, and after informing the Golden Core Ancestor, the plan for the Jiangtian Night Banquet was finalized.

They wished to invite cultivators from all over the Chu Kingdom to this Jiangtian Night Banquet to select a suitable immortal prodigy for a marriage alliance.

Therefore, they rely on the major sect or powerful force behind this person to protect the Nangong family.

To compromise and hand over the fate of the Nangong family to others is truly the worst possible course of action.

But there was no other way.

The Golden Elixir Ancestor is still alive today, and can still provide some protection. But once the Ancestor passes away, we can only pray for good fortune ourselves.

Nangong Ming sighed deeply, a profound sense of powerlessness welling up in his heart.

If it weren't for the need to protect the family, what father who truly loves his daughter would be willing to let her become a pawn in the family's game?

Fortunately, Li Yi had saved his daughter's life, and the lady could tell that A-Wang had some admiration for him.

Otherwise, he really couldn't think of how to bring it up.

Madam Lin gently patted his back and comforted him, "Husband, there's always a way out. Our children and grandchildren will have their own blessings. Don't worry too much."

Lin felt very sorry for her husband.

The once spirited young patriarch has, without anyone noticing, found himself shouldering the entire Nangong family alone.

He even went so far as to give up the long-term opportunity to perhaps form a golden core, ultimately only forming a false core.

He sacrificed so much for his family.

"Let's take one step at a time."

……

Soon, the Nangong family officially released the news.

We should emulate the Central Region and hold a grand banquet on the banks of the Lingyang River, inviting talented young people from all over the world to participate.

The reason given was quite natural.

Firstly, it is to celebrate the unity of the Chu Kingdom's cultivation community in defeating the demonic cultivators.

Secondly, it also serves to continue the grand gathering of the Chu Kingdom, the Dragon Pool Mountain Gathering, which was interrupted by the invasion of the Demon Ruins cultivators.

However, since this was a grand event hosted by the Nangong family itself, there was no distinction between the nine lineages.

All the monks attended the meeting in their individual capacities.

These claims were already enough to attract many cultivators, and the promise of the final prize made the cultivators of Chu Kingdom even more eager to participate.

It is said that the three who performed the best in the sword competition at this banquet will have the opportunity, under the protection of the elders of the Nangong family, to comprehend the sword energy left behind by the old man in the straw raincoat on the river a thousand years ago.

This information is intriguing.

Those without a heart will naturally only be attracted by that wisp of sword intent, while those with a heart will wonder what realm this senior, who is able to protect the Divine Transformation Sword Qi, is at.

Fake pills? That doesn't seem quite right.

At the very least, one would need to be at the Golden Core stage of cultivation...

In an instant, the cultivation world of Chu was in turmoil.

These days, Jiangxian Pass, this celestial city, has become increasingly lively.

teahouse.

"Just when the entire Chu Kingdom was filled with lamentations across its four prefectures and thirteen counties, and the immortals were filled with despair, a small boat suddenly appeared in the misty morning on the river."

"A lone figure sat at the bow of the boat..."

The storyteller spoke fluently and eloquently, yet he was still telling the same story.

Since the news of the Nangong family's banquet has spread, the storytelling has naturally focused on the origins of Jiangxian Pass and the old man on the river.

After all, many people come here specifically for this reason. If they don't make money from spirit stones, wouldn't they be bastards?

In a private room on the second floor.

"..."

Song Yan looked at the face in front of him that resembled his own by six or seven points, and was speechless for a moment.

"What are you looking at?" Sheng Nian's voice came from beneath that skin.

"Didn't you say you had something to do? What are you standing there for? Tell me what it is."

Song Yan then came to her senses: "Ah... have you seen this before?"

He took out a bright red pill from his Qiankun bag, used his spiritual power to support it, and handed it to Sheng Nian.

This is the pill that Li Yi plundered from Qin's belongings a few days ago.

Although Qin Xijun will definitely be informed when they return to the sect, Gou Sheng is a member of the demonic path and may know more about this kind of pill.

"What is this thing?"

Sheng Nian took it, glanced at it casually, and initially looked like he didn't recognize it.

But after a moment, his eyes widened slightly, as if he had remembered something.

"Where did you get this thing from?"

Seeing that Gou Sheng seemed to recognize her, Song Yan did not hide anything and told him in detail about the information about the pill and the Qin family.

"The Qin family..."

Sheng Nian narrowed his eyes and said, "That's really ruthless."

"How to say?"

"Strictly speaking, this thing cannot be called a pill."

He returned the pill to Song Yan: "Legend has it that it was originally a special pill made by a demonic alchemist based on a blood-path Gu worm from the southern border."

"Barely, let's call it Blood Skull Pill."

"Gu worms...?" Song Yan naturally thought of Xiang Zhaoling, the female cultivator from the Southern Frontier in the sect.

Sheng Nian nodded.

“Cultivators in the Southern Frontier mostly rely on Gu worms for cultivation, and there are many kinds of Gu worms. In legend, there is a blood-path Gu worm called the Blood Skull Gu.”

"The effect of this kind of Gu worm is to improve a cultivator's cultivation aptitude."

A cultivator's aptitude for cultivation is linked to many things, such as spiritual roots, physical constitution, and comprehension.

Whether it's the spiritual root aptitude of ordinary cultivators or the cultivation aptitude of other places like the Southern and Northern Frontiers, the fundamental goal is to bring one's body closer to a state of clarity and transparency.

That is, it is more in line with the spiritual energy of this world.

This kind of Gu worm cannot change the aptitude of a spiritual root, but it can improve the flesh and bones.

but……

Refining it is easy, but cultivating it requires sacrificing something: the lives of one's own blood relatives.

Legend has it that in ancient times, in the southern borderlands, there once appeared an extremely wicked cultivator who, in order to improve his aptitude, did not hesitate to slaughter his entire clan.

Later, perhaps due to divine wrath, the demonic Gu cultivators and the Blood Skull Gu disappeared without a trace and never appeared again.

"And this Blood Skull Pill is just a replica. Like the Blood Skull Gu, it can improve a cultivator's innate talent."

"The difference is that this pill only requires the essence and blood of a relative, so the effect is naturally not as great."

Sheng Nian naturally didn't recognize the pill, but the ancient demon Lao Xie within his body did.

Song Yan remained silent.

At this point, all the clues Qin Xijun had mentioned before were now connected.

"The first demonic cultivator to research this thing seems to have been a demonic cultivator from the Yellow Springs Path."

“Apart from some old-timers in the Yellow Springs Path, very few cultivators from other lineages in the Demon Ruins know about this item.”

"It seems that the Qin family has been involved with demonic cultivators for quite some time."

Song Yan made up his mind that once he returned to the sect, he would see if he could meet with the sect leader and give him this item.

It's better to leave this kind of thing to the important people to handle.

As an insignificant ant, I should just focus on cultivating in peace.

Let's leave this matter aside for now.

"Are you here for the banquet too?"

"I don't have time for that." Sheng Nian shook his head: "A-Yun came with her fellow disciples, so I came to see her."

"Speaking of which, where is Xiao He?"

"Oh……"

Song Yan smiled and said, "She's going on a long trip back to her hometown."

Since we are all practitioners of the Dao, those who can be said to have traveled far must at least be no longer in the State of Chu.

Sheng Nian looked suspicious: "She went alone? How can you be so careless..."

“Xiaohe isn’t a child anymore; she’s all grown up. Do you think I can be like you, always sneaking around like a ghost?”

Song Yan looked at him with disdain: "You need to learn to let go."

"you……"

Sheng Nian glared at him, his eyes wide with anger: "You were lecturing me so formally before, saying I should stay with my family, and now you're telling me to let go. You've said all the right and wrong things."

He jumped up from his seat and strode outside.

"I'm too lazy to waste my breath on you. Your friends have arrived, so I'm leaving now."

Song Yan chuckled and let Sheng Nian leave, while he waited quietly there.

Not long after, three people pushed open the door and entered.

There was one man and two women. The male cultivator had gained some weight and was none other than Li Qingfeng, whom we hadn't seen in a long time.

Beside him were Cen Qinghe and Gu Qingqing.

"Old Song! Long time no see."

"Senior Brother Song!"

Previously, Li Qingfeng and others sent a message saying that Junior Sister Cen Qinghe wanted to stroll around Jiangxian Pass before going to the banquet at Nangong. Gu Qingqing happened to be coming from the sect as well. The three of them were acquaintances, so they traveled together.

The group agreed to meet here, and Song Yan would take them directly to the riverbank.

"Oh dear, my two junior brothers and sisters, you look radiant lately. Perhaps you have some good news to share?"

Gu Qingqing lacked discernment, but Song Yan could tell that Li Pang and Junior Sister Cen Qinghe were inseparable, which seemed a bit suspicious.

When Song Yan pointed at her like that, Cen Qinghe looked a little shy, but Li Pang just laughed and pretended to be simple and honest.

Gu Qingqing's mind went blank; she had no idea what they were talking about.

"Old Song, let's not stay here any longer. Let's go straight there and take us to the banquet by the river."

"Alright."

Song Yan nodded.

There are still two or three days before the Jiangtian Night Banquet officially begins, but such a grand event naturally cannot last only one day.

Nangong had already arranged many activities by the river, welcoming all the cultivators present to participate.

At this very moment, Li Yi was already sparring and fighting with someone by the river.

The four of them then left the city and flew towards the Nangong clan's territory.

Nangong invited heroes from all over the world to attend the ceremony, and everyone was welcome to observe. However, there were some restrictions on those who could formally participate in the banquet.

Only young geniuses under the age of thirty-five who have established their Dao foundation are allowed to show their faces.

The Nangong family's stance is that they want to resume the previously interrupted Dragon Pool Mountain Nine Veins Grand Competition, which naturally involves focusing on the younger generation of cultivators.

Therefore, most of those gathered by the river are young cultivators.

Since the Jiangtian Night Banquet is called a banquet, the main focus should be on a relaxed atmosphere.

There are quite a few programs. In addition to fighting and killing in the arena, there are also elegant activities such as playing the zither, chess, calligraphy and painting.

At this very moment, many cultivators had already gathered with their companions to play the zither and chess by the river.

Add to that the gentle breeze and bright moon over the river...

Elegance, truly elegance.

In comparison, Li Yi and his men, who were fighting and making a racket not far away, seemed rather out of place.

Just as Song Yan was about to lead the three of them forward, a figure walked past him.

Upon closer inspection, the man was wearing a kasaya and holding a begging bowl; he was clearly a Buddhist disciple.

Unexpectedly, this night banquet in Jiangtian has even attracted Buddhist monks.

"Amitabha, it is this humble monk who is blocking the way."

The Buddhist cultivator seemed to have just realized what was happening. He looked up at Song Yan and the others, then realized he had been somewhat rude and quickly stepped aside.

"It doesn't matter."

After exchanging a few polite words, the four of them went to meet up with Li Yi.

"Hmm? That benefactor just now seems familiar, I feel like I've seen him somewhere before."

Xuan Tong touched his smooth head and muttered, "Why does he look so familiar?"

"what."

He remembered.

Several years ago, on a Laba Festival, he took his junior brother down the mountain to various sects and schools to offer sacrificial Laba dew.

I met this benefactor at the gate of Dongyuan Mountain.

That was also the first time Xuantong brought his junior brother down the mountain, and he remembers most of the people they met.

He remembered that the benefactor's surname was Song, and that he was showing signs of inner demons at the time.

"Now this Benefactor Song is clear-headed and his inner demons have all vanished."

"That's good, that's good."

(End of this chapter)