Resume Solo Travel

After Lin Shifei ascended the high platform, he performed the starting movements of the flying dance, and then the musicians and qin players below the stage played the corresponding music.

As the music of drums and flutes began, Lin Shi started to dance. Her face was already beautiful, and her figure was incomparably graceful. Beneath her cloud-like, flying-bun hairstyle was her flower-like face, and her beautiful peach-blossom eyes were captivating and sparkling. With the rhythm of the flying dance, she slowly rose to about two feet above the ground, and then red lotus flowers appeared out of thin air beneath her bare feet, making her ankles appear even whiter. She danced while hovering on these magically appearing red lotus flowers, watching the reactions of the audience below. After finishing her dance, she remained suspended in mid-air for a while.

The spectators below the high platform of Cangpo Altar had long since stood up in astonishment, their eyes fixed on Lin Shi's every move. The eyes of several city lords also began to gleam with a hint of fanaticism.

Seeing that the audience below the stage reacted well, with no one fainting or being scared to death, Lin Shi stood suspended in the air and performed a sword dance. Before she started the dance, her hands were empty, but as soon as she began the dance, the Demon-Slaying Sword, with its blade covered in black diamond-shaped patterns and faintly glowing with a blue light, appeared in her lowered right hand.

A slender and beautiful woman, yet with a resolute gaze, wielded her sword with fluid grace, like a dragon soaring through the air. The tip of her sword gleamed, like the rising sun piercing the clouds at dawn. The sword's aura seemed to transform into a chilling, menacing mist, enveloping the entire scene in a somber atmosphere. After Lin Shi wielded her sword briefly, more and more swords slowly appeared around her. She rose slightly into the air, and the numerous longswords that had been stationary around her then circled her rapidly. Afterward, the swords flew erratically or descended in unison. Finally, all the flying swords pointed upwards, forming a straight line above her head.

Everyone present had no doubt that if Lin Shi wanted to, those swords would instantly change direction, fly towards them, and pierce their vital points.

Lin Shi stopped and landed on the platform floor. Shoes materialized on her feet and touched the floor. The numerous swords with their tips pointing upwards that had been hovering above her head also disappeared. Only the Demon-Slaying Sword in her right hand remained, still gleaming with a chilling light.

"Is there anyone who wants to come up and fight me?" Lin Shi asked, standing on the high platform and looking down at the crowd.

The crowd below immediately reacted in various ways. Some were eager to participate, while others looked worried.

"I'll do it!" The two female city lords, Lü Qiwen and Huang Chenghua, spoke up in unison. After speaking, they looked at each other.

"Lord, you mustn't!" Their husbands and subordinates were immediately frightened and grabbed their clothes, pleading with them.

"My mind is made up, don't try to persuade me." Neither of the two female city lords paid any attention to the advice of their families and subordinates. But one of them had to go first. The five major cities already had intermarriages, and most of the city lords and their families were related by marriage.

“Lord Huang, I am a few years older than you. According to our kinship, I am your cousin. Please let me go first.” Lü Qiwen spoke first.

“Okay. I’ll go up second then.” Huang Chenghua agreed immediately.

“Then I’ll be the third one to go on stage,” Zhu Yong continued.

“Then I’ll be the fourth to go on stage.” Bai Kunwu followed closely behind.

In the end, only Qin Yuan remained. He glanced at Ye Ruxue and said loudly, "Then I'll be the fifth to go up on stage." But Ye Ruxue only glanced at him before turning her gaze back to Lin Shi on the high platform.

The two female city lords, Lü Qiwen and Huang Chenghua, were both tall and spirited women. Standing before Lin Shi, they were both almost half a head taller than her. They were both military officers and each had their own preferred weapon.

Lin Shi first engaged in a brief, non-lethal duel with Lü Qiwen. Seeing that Lü Qiwen wielded a spear, Lin Shi conjured one herself and suppressed her cultivation to the Foundation Establishment stage before unleashing her full power against him for about an incense stick's time. Lin Shi won without a doubt, but had her body not already been tempered, she likely would have been knocked off the stage by Lü Qiwen's spear.

Immediately after Lü Qiwen left the arena, Lin Shi and Huang Chenghua had their own match. Huang Chenghua and Lin Shi looked more alike, both beautiful and spirited, and appeared to be closer in age. Both chose longswords and fought earnestly for the duration of an incense stick burning.

When Lin Shi fought Zhu Yong, Zhu Yong used an axe to clash with Lin Shi's longsword. Lin Shi's longsword could only be saved from breaking under the powerful attack of the axe by using spiritual energy. But even so, Lin Shi still defeated his opponent in about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn.

When it was Bai Kunwu's turn, he chose a weapon that the other city lords hadn't used. He picked a large sword and wielded it with great power. But no matter how high a mortal's martial arts skills are, they can't compare to those of an ordinary cultivator, even one at the early Foundation Establishment stage.

Qin Yuan, who was last to enter the arena, also used a longsword, but he wielded two swords, both of which were wide, flat, and heavy. Lin Shi showed no mercy when fighting him, and they fought for a long time before Lin Shi finally managed to cut both of Qin Yuan's swords in half before sending him off the stage.

After competing with all five city lords, no one else dared to step onto the stage to challenge Lin Shi. The mortal nobles and officials, all shrewd and worldly-wise, were adept at navigating social situations. If they went up and won against Lin Shi, the other city lords would lose face; if they lost, they would be humiliated in front of everyone, potentially ruining their futures.

Lin Shi looked at the five city lords and Ye Ruxue below the stage, but had no mood to say anything. Above her head, dark clouds began to gather, and terrifying sounds of lightning and thunder could be heard from within them.

Lin Shi glanced up at the ceiling, then turned her gaze back to the crowd below the stage. The crowd vaguely knew what was about to happen, and suppressed their excitement and curiosity, watching Lin Shi quietly.

Lin Shi looked at the crowd below the stage for a while, then took out many copies of the Dream Heaven Technique from her storage ring, as well as some general, non-confidential sword manuals and a general introduction to the cultivation world. She let her spiritual power drive her, placing one set in front of each of the five city lords, and in front of or in the arms of other people in the audience who clearly had spiritual roots and cultivation aptitude.

Having finished all this, Lin Shi said, "Everyone, these are the most basic cultivation techniques, sword manuals, and an introduction to the cultivation world. If fate allows, I hope we can meet again in the Upper Realm." She then turned to Ye Ruxue and continued, "Ye Ruxue, I hope we can meet again in the Upper Realm someday!"

After saying a few words, Lin Shi said no more. Instead, his figure transformed into a beam of light and instantly soared into the air.

It was already afternoon. The sunset painted half the sky red, a breathtaking sight.

Lin Shi's figure became a tiny dot, suspended beneath the dark clouds.

"Hurry up and get the Immortal Autumn Water Mirror!" Bai Kunwu urged the other four city lords. He was the first to hold a small round mirror in his hand. Qin Yuan and the other four city lords also took out round mirrors one after another. The five city lords then stood below the high platform of Cangpo Altar and placed the Immortal Autumn Water Mirror on the ground one by one. Then, as the five of them chanted incantations, the small mirror slowly transformed into a huge, upright mirror and merged into one, clearly displaying the scene of the cultivators undergoing tribulation in the sky.

The people of Cangpo Altar then sat down in front of the Immortal Autumn Water Mirror and looked at the scene inside.

Ye Ruxue looked at all this in shock. When Qin Yuan came to take her hand, she didn't even have time to react before he pulled her to sit down next to him.