Sword Sect Outer Sect

Chapter 358 The Figure by the Fire Pool
After Chen Linyuan finished speaking, he stopped paying attention to the matter and started fiddling with his own tea set, which no one knew who had given it to him.

He picked up the earthenware pot, poured some tea into the only empty cup on the table, and calmly began to sip it.

Upon hearing this, the two subconsciously exchanged a glance.

On this side, Song Yan felt a sense of unease. Was what Senior Sister Qin Ying said true or false?

According to her own account, she was deceived by a villain because she misjudged the sword talisman and was careless. What a coincidence that it was Xinshan Sanren.

What is her relationship with Xinshan Sanren?
Although I felt that Senior Sister Qin Ying was very suspicious, I had no evidence. Even if I just thought about it, I couldn't be sure whether Senior Sister Qin Ying was lying or not.

This is such a hassle. If only Wu Huaguo were here.

Meanwhile, Qin Ying also sensed something was wrong. Xin Shan Sanren had been killed by his disciple Sheng Nian, who had also destroyed his cave.

Then why did this sword talisman end up in Song Yan's hands?

There are only two possibilities: either Song Yan killed Sheng Nian and found this item in his Qiankun bag.

But if that's really all there is to it, he wouldn't need to meet with the sect leader and hand over the sword token; he could simply embezzle it himself.

He came here to inquire about the origin of this sword talisman. If he hadn't "confessed" to the sect leader beforehand, he might have been branded as colluding with demonic cultivators.

Another scenario...

Logically speaking, Sheng Nian was only in the mid-stage of the Foundation Establishment realm. Even if his combat strength was truly astonishing, coupled with the ambush, it would be difficult for him to kill Xin Shan alone.

But what if we assume that Song Yan was also present at the time?

Qin Ying narrowed her eyes.

No one would question the strength of this rising star of the Dongyuan Sect. At the early stage of the Foundation Establishment Realm, he had already unleashed an astonishing sword strike in front of the entire Chu Kingdom, killing one of the two mid-Foundation Establishment Realm demonic cultivators and causing them to flee from a distance of a hundred miles.

Although we can't see his exact strength now, he showed signs of being at the mid-Foundation Establishment stage at the Jiangtian Night Banquet a few days ago.

If Song Yan joins forces with Sheng Nian, they will have a good chance of killing him silently.

Could these two have some connection?
However, the most urgent task is to extricate myself from this matter.

Qin Ying was the first to make a move.

She slowly stood up and bowed slightly to Chen Linyuan: "Sect Master, this talisman was originally bestowed upon me by you. Its loss is due to my negligence and carelessness. I cannot shirk my responsibility."

"Fortunately, Junior Brother Song found it by chance, preventing it from falling into the hands of those wicked demonic cultivators who would do evil. I am already thankful for my good fortune."

"I dare not accept it now. This talisman was lost due to my negligence. If I were to take it back, I fear I would still feel uneasy in the future and would feel even more ashamed of the sect leader's kindness."

Qin Ying changed the subject: "Although Junior Brother Song only said it was a coincidence, the process must have been full of twists and turns and dangers. Why not give it to Junior Brother Song for self-defense?"

The Golden Core Talisman is equivalent to a strike at the Golden Core realm.

The same principle applies to sword talismans.

As long as you don't mess with those legitimate Golden Elixir cultivators, it's enough to protect yourself and stay alive.

Qin Ying's words were resounding and sincere, seemingly stemming entirely from his concern for the sect and his junior brother, as well as his reflection on his own mistakes.

If we step back from Xin Shan's matter, Qin Ying's profound understanding of righteousness can even make one feel a little ashamed, wondering if the doubts one had just harbored about her were too petty.

Song Yan took a deep breath, suppressing the distracting thoughts in his mind, and respectfully said, "This disciple is terrified. This talisman is a precious treasure bestowed upon Senior Sister by the Sect Master. This disciple was fortunate enough to find it and dares not take credit for it or covet it. How to deal with it is entirely up to the Sect Master and Senior Sister to decide."

Chen Linyuan then put down his teacup: "You two, stop with the fake politeness."

"Now everyone's happy. If there's nothing else, take the sword and talisman and leave quickly, don't bother me."

"Uh...yes, Sect Master."

Qin Ying and Song Yan dared not be negligent and bowed in unison, saying, "This disciple takes his leave."

"go Go."

The two of them left the forbidden area together.

A mountain breeze swept by as Song Yan and Qin Ying walked side by side.

The two remained silent at first, neither of them speaking.

"Junior brother, where did you find this?" Qin Ying suddenly asked.

"Junior brother, please don't misunderstand. Senior sister just wants to find out the whole story."

“Senior Sister Qin,” Song Yan said carefully, “I killed a demonic cultivator and obtained it from him.”

As he asked the question, his eyes turned slightly to the side, watching the expression on Qin Ying's face.

Unfortunately, Qin Ying did not react in any particular way.

"Who is that person?"

"The man introduced himself, saying he was a demonic cultivator of some kind, named Sheng Nian."

"I see." Qin Ying nodded.

"Senior sister, how did the other party obtain your sword talisman?" Now it was Song Yan's turn to ask.

"It's a long story."

Qin Ying shook her head, looking disappointed: "I have a good sister who used to be a disciple of the Sheyang Sect. Later, she was ostracized in the sect and left to become a rogue cultivator."

Sheyang Sect...

"That day she told me that she was going to a secret realm to explore for treasure and wanted to borrow the sword talisman from me for protection. She said she would return it if she didn't use it."

“She also left a lot of spiritual items with me as collateral.”

"I thought she was a good friend, so I didn't think much of it and sent it to her for the time being. I never expected that she was colluding with demonic cultivators."

“A few days ago, I followed the clues and went to her place, only to find that the cave of the demonic cultivator who was connected with her had been destroyed.”

"I suppose it must be the person you mentioned, Junior Brother, named Sheng Nian."

Upon hearing this, Song Yan pondered for a moment without speaking, but simply nodded.

I couldn't find any obvious flaws in her expression and words, but my doubts were not completely dispelled.

Upon reaching a certain point, Qin Ying stopped and said, "I owe it all to my junior brother for retrieving the sword talisman and preventing that demonic cultivator from using it to commit evil."

"It was just luck."

"I have other matters to attend to, so I'll take my leave first. Please go ahead, junior brother."

"Take care, senior sister." Song Yan bowed.

Watching Qin Ying's aloof figure gradually disappear into the distance, Song Yan stood still, his brows slightly furrowed.

After pondering for a moment, he walked out of the foothills and then flew back to his cave on the Sword Wiping Peak.

who cares.

Suppress these chaotic thoughts. Since the sect leader already knows about this situation, there's no need for me to delve into it further.

Instead of racking your brains over these trivial matters, you should focus on improving your own abilities.

For example, today he has something even more important to do.

Upon entering the cave, Song Yan immediately went into the quiet room.

He sat cross-legged, calmed his mind, and his thoughts sank into the realm of Yin and Yang.

Fire pool on the mountaintop.

The purple spirit miasma stone that he had first thrown into the fire pool had completely disappeared after being melted by the fire pool day and night.

Strands of deep blue light seeped into the flying sword Qiu Ren above the pool of fire.

"Om..."

A long, resonant sword cry echoed across the mountain peak. The sword, which had been covered in cracks, was now completely renewed after absorbing the essence of the Purple Spirit Miasma Stone.

The originally dull and gray luster became clear, and blue-purple patterns flowed endlessly along the spine of the sword.

"It's done!?"

Song Yan naturally knew that the fire pool could repair flying swords and improve their grade, but he was surprised that a sword as damaged as Qiu Ren's could be repaired as long as the materials were available.

Now, Qiu Ren is no longer broken and damaged. Judging from the spiritual power it exudes, it should be even stronger than an ordinary mid-grade spiritual weapon.

After all, the Yan clan ancestor forged it according to the standards of a magic weapon.

Currently, Song Yan only possesses two mid-grade spiritual weapons: the Unmoored Boat and the Binding Blade.

In terms of sheer power, Qiu Ren is even stronger than the other two.

With a slight thought, he summoned the reborn flying sword from the fire pool, wanting to experience it properly.

However, the moment his divine sense touched the flying sword, he suddenly sensed something.

Suddenly, a faint rumble of thunder came from the sky above the realm of Yin and Yang.

Looking up, one could see black and white energies surging within, followed by two streams of spiritual energy drifting out and slowly descending.

One was deep, pitch black; the other was pure, flawless white.

It landed squarely on Qiu Ren's sword.

Om-!
The originally peaceful sword sound suddenly became more intense, the sword trembled slightly, and the light flowing on it suddenly intensified.

The black and white halos merged on the surface of the sword like ripples on water, and the originally stable spiritual energy of the weapon became extremely chaotic and violent at this moment.

"What's going on?" Song Yan frowned, somewhat confused.

He didn't look at the flying sword in the fire pool; instead, he looked up at the sky.

From the very beginning, when it was still the Yin-Yang Pearl, Song Yan was curious about the black and white energies in the realm.

Starting with the Unmoored Boat, the ancient swords he acquired later, such as the Binding Blade, the Crying Moon, and the Returning Man of Jin, all contributed to the black and white clouds within the Endless Treasury to varying degrees.

I only know that they must have many miraculous effects, but I have never been able to figure them out.

However, at this moment, the hazy figure that had been sitting cross-legged by the fire pit, silent like a clay or wooden sculpture, suddenly stood up.

Although the face was still unclear, Song Yan could clearly feel a somewhat anxious emotional fluctuation emanating from the illusory figure.

Song Yan waited quietly to the side. It was difficult to judge the flow of time in the Endless Hidden Realm, and he didn't know how much time had passed. The fire pool and the flying sword remained unchanged.

He tried again to activate the flying sword, but the figure suddenly moved.

He took a step forward, directly blocking Song Yan's path between him and the fire pit, thus separating them.

This action seemed to be an attempt to prevent him from touching the sword.

But what does this really mean? We can't keep going on like this.

This figure had never reacted so violently since it appeared in the Endless Treasury.

The figure remained motionless, simply blocking the fire pit, its blurry outline seemingly trembling slightly.

"What to do?"

After a few breaths of stalemate, Song Yan still didn't understand what he meant.

Perhaps due to the prolonged stalemate, even the remnant soul of this senior, who had remained silent for many years, finally spoke out in desperation: "Weapon forging...materials..."

"The sword blade..."

Refining materials?

Song Yan looked at the pile of unused Purple Spirit Miasma Stones beside the fire pool, somewhat puzzled.

I understood what they meant; they wanted to get some more materials for forging the sword.

"The repair of this flying sword should be almost complete, so why do we still need forging materials..."

"Could it be that this flying sword can be upgraded to a higher grade?"

Although it's unclear why, Song Yan has one advantage: he's very receptive to advice in areas he's unfamiliar with.

He took out a lot of refining materials from his Qiankun bag.

There are all kinds of cloud iron and crystals. Some of them were bought by myself from various markets, and some were taken from demon cultivators during the chaos of the Demon Ruins.

That wasn't all; Song Yan suddenly remembered something.

His divine sense withdrew from the Endless Treasury and left the cave, arriving at the bamboo grove courtyard.

Under the nurturing of the illusory image, the small bamboo shoot next to the original Cloud Abyss Sword Bamboo has gradually begun to grow.

After looking at it for a while, Song Yan made up his mind.

Spiritual objects are meant to be used; there's no need to be reluctant to part with them.

He summoned the Unmoored Boat, condensing a wisp of sword energy on its blade before unleashing several sword strikes.

The Cloud Abyss Sword Bamboo was cut in half at the waist, leaving only a small section on the ground.

call--

Wisps of sharp clouds emerged from the cut-off point, instantly shrouding the courtyard in mist.

Back in the Endless Treasury, Song Yan placed the Cloud Abyss Sword Bamboo in front of the figure.

According to the "Thousand Pills and Strange Prescriptions", the bamboo joints of Yunyuan Sword Bamboo are an excellent material for forging flying swords.

He didn't understand any of that, so he just gathered everything he could get his hands on that could be considered sword-forging material and placed it around the fire pool on the mountaintop.

In an instant, what was originally just raging inferno and wildfire was filled with the rich spiritual energy of the five elements and vibrant life force of these rare spiritual materials.

Among them, the aura emitted by the Cloud Abyss Sword Bamboo is the most unique.

The hazy figure beside the fire pit, which had been swaying uncertainly, paused slightly when it saw the sword bamboo.

Even though he couldn't see the face clearly, Song Yan could clearly feel a strong gaze fixed firmly on the sword bamboo.

The figure stretched out its hand, seemingly trying to mobilize spiritual power to summon the spiritual materials it needed to its side.

But there was no spiritual light gathering at the fingertips of the figure; only a deathly silence.

The figure froze abruptly, its arm falling limply to its side.

He may only now realize that he is already dead.

He is now just a remnant soul, or rather, an obsession that doesn't even qualify as a remnant soul.

Without a physical body and unable to control any spiritual power, he barely maintained his existence by relying solely on his foolish obsession from his previous life, coupled with the immense power of this wondrous world.

"..."

Looking at him, Song Yan felt a pang of sadness for no apparent reason.

This person once devoted his entire life to finding an extraordinary path for weapon crafting, so he must have been a cultivator obsessed with the Dao of crafting.

However, the deceased are gone, leaving only lingering memories.

Even if he can manifest his form under the mystery of the Endless Treasury, so what?
What can we do to fulfill our long-cherished wish?

Just when Song Yan thought that the figure could only disappear in despair, a sudden change occurred!

Suddenly, the figure picked up the sword bamboo and walked towards the center of the fire pool without hesitation.

His posture was resolute, like that of a martyr facing death with equanimity.

(End of this chapter)