Chapter 53 To be a good senior brother, the first thing you need is a kind heart...
Immortals are those who migrate to the mountains.
Those who cultivate immortality do not live among mortals, but mostly reside atop mountains, near the realm of the gods, to question the Dao of Heaven. After the severing of the connection between Heaven and Earth, gods and mortals became separated. The gods went to the unreachable heavens, and mortals who wished to approach the gods could only seek answers atop the highest mountains closest to Heaven on earth.
The highest mountains in the world are none other than Kunlun and Tianque. These two mountain ranges have attracted a large number of cultivators, gradually forming two major cultivation sects, one in the west and one in the east, one active in the world and one reclusive. The Kunlun Mountains are dotted with numerous peaks, and like the mountain's distribution, the various sects within Kunlun are intricately intertwined, each with a large number of disciples, making it arguably the largest sect in the world in terms of scale. Among the immortal sects, the other ones that can be called renowned are Tianque and the three major cultivation families.
The roc soared through the clouds. Jiang Yuhuo sat atop its back, looking down from above. In the distance, she could see a small hill covered with red maples, standing out against the lush greenery. Maintained by spiritual energy, the red leaves never faded. That was Zhenyang Peak, and beside the maple forest was her small courtyard.
The roc beneath her had carried fishing lights across the river many times, and was already very familiar with her landing spot.
The roc stopped in the open space in the middle of the courtyard, and after the person on its back got off, it flew away on its own.
Hearing the commotion in the courtyard, a head peeked out from the maple forest.
Upon seeing the familiar figure in the courtyard, the man in the woods beamed with joy.
"Junior sister, you're finally back."
Jiang Yuhuo turned around and saw her senior brother Wen Yizhan in the red maple forest.
Shouldn't they be exorcising demonic energy and purifying the waters of the Moyu River at this time of year? Why have they suddenly returned?
Jiang Yuhuo was puzzled, but Wen Yizhan came running from the red maple forest, his feet barely touching the ground, his clothes billowing, along with his high ponytail and hair ribbon, his joy overflowing. Wen Yizhan was enthusiastic, but his beloved junior sister refused his embrace.
Jiang Yuhuo pressed the hilt of his sword against Wen Yizhan's chest, his gaze falling on his hands. "Senior brother, wash the mud off your hands first."
Wen Yizhan wasn't in a hurry to wash her hands. She lowered her brows, pretended to be angry, and smeared some mud on Jiang Yuhuo's nose. "You heartless bastard! This is all evidence of your hard work in taking care of the yard for you."
The maple forest beside the courtyard was planted by Wen Yizhan. Seven years have passed since Jiang Yuhuo first entered the sect, and it has grown to a considerable size. Occasionally, Wen Yizhan would also plant some immortal herbs and spiritual flowers in the forest, often spending most of the day there. Normally, it would be perfectly normal for him to be here, but now it is April.
"Have you finished dealing with Mo Yujiang?" Jiang Yuhuo asked suspiciously, ignoring Wen Yizhan's prank.
"No, it's still a long way off. But a few old fogies discovered that the purification materials were running low, so they sent me back to get them. That's how your senior brother got to steal a day of leisure." Wen Yizhan raised his eyebrows and smiled smugly.
So that's how it is; that's definitely the style of this senior brother.
Just as Jiang Yuhuo was about to wipe the mud off her nose, Wen Yizhan came over and used her clean wrist to wipe it off for her.
"I've been gone for so many days, has my junior sister missed me?"
Seeing Jiang Yuhuo's wrinkled nose, Wen Yizhan felt a tickle in her heart, and a wicked thought inexplicably arose that she wanted to dirty that fair and delicate face.
The junior sister didn't give him a chance to continue his antics on her face and walked into the room expressionlessly.
Voices came from inside the house, "It's only been half a month."
Since she didn't deny it, he took it as an admission. To be a good senior brother, the first thing you need is a good mindset.
He remembered when she first entered Kunlun, and he taught her to write. She was a genius in swordsmanship, but utterly hopeless at reading and writing. Sometimes, when he got impatient, he would grab her hand and force her to write. Other times, when she dozed off, he would tease her with a brush, drawing her face like a painted cat. When she woke up, she would come to settle the score with him. One would run, the other chase, making a complete mess of Zhang Zhenyang's study.
Whether she was angry or annoyed, every time she teased and joked with him, her lifeless junior sister would seem a little happier and more lively. Little by little, he dragged her back from hell to the human world, so she was no longer that lonely ghost covered in snow on a snowy day.
Much after finding his junior sister in the snow, he finally remembered where the feeling of familiarity he had when they first met came from. It came from the portrait at the gate of Pinghai County. The person in the portrait was involved in some secrets of the Dayong royal family. He couldn't find out much, but he would inquire and collect bits and pieces every time he went down the mountain, and somehow he managed to piece together her past.
She never mentioned those things, and he never asked, but he roughly knew how she had traveled from the warm south to that cold winter.
Fortunately, the junior sister emerged, clinging to Zhang Zhenyang's leg, and came to Zhenyang Peak. Now, she is like a red maple in the forest, vibrant and full of strength.
Thinking of this, Wen Yizhan felt quite accomplished. He had put a lot of effort into nurturing Fenglin and his junior sister.
The only flaw of my junior sister is that she is a bit cold-hearted.
For example, at this moment, as soon as Wen Yizhan saw the wound on her hand, he asked her about it with concern.
Jiang Yuhuo simply said, "It's nothing, just a minor injury."
After saying that, she applied medicine and bandaged herself with great skill, giving Wen Yizhan no chance to interfere.
Helpless, Wen Yizhan had no choice but to wash his hands first, and then lay down on the small bamboo couch in Jiang Yuhuo's house, stretching out his lazy bones and pretending to sleep.
Having finally managed to return to Zhenyang Peak, the first thing he did was to tend to the flowers and plants in the forest for her. It took him half a day, but he was exhausted.
But no matter how hard he works, as soon as he returns to this little courtyard, his heart finds peace.
Wen Yizhan lay on the small bamboo couch, which was clearly too small for him, and tossed and turned several times until he found the most comfortable position.
Time has flowed through this courtyard, and seven years have passed in the blink of an eye.
He squinted for a while, then opened his eyes and propped his head up to look at Jiang Yuhuo sitting by the window.
Jiang Yuhuo took a manual on mental cultivation techniques and flipped through it carefully, frowning from time to time.
I ignored him.
"Junior sister, my hand hurts," Wen Yizhan groaned as she lay on the couch.
Jiang Yuhuo turned a page, and even without reading it, she knew he was bringing up the time she bit him twice back then.
"Seven years is enough time for even a severed hand to grow back."
"But the bite scar is still there."
Where is the scar?
"In my heart."
"..."
Jiang Yuhuo completely ignored him.
But seeing her junior sister reading so intently, Wen Yizhan felt quite gratified and read for a while longer with satisfaction.
When Jiang Yuhuo wasn't practicing swordsmanship, she would look at the books Wen Yizhan had left her: mental cultivation techniques, sword manuals, weapon manuals, and even some local chronicles and books on various arts and crafts that he had secretly brought back from the foot of the mountain. Jiang Yuhuo accepted everything without hesitation. She read a lot of books and practiced a lot of sword techniques, just like a person who had been starving for a long time, wolfing down her food.
She was a disciple of Kunlun, but her master, Zhang Zhenyang, was either in seclusion or down the mountain. The number of days she actually spent on Zhenyang Peak was very limited. Most of the time, it was this senior brother who taught her how to hold a pen and how to wield a sword.
The two often huddled together like this, disturbing each other, but they always managed to get along in the end.
Wen Yizhan had become accustomed to such peaceful days, so peaceful that he felt they would continue like this in the future.
He was idly counting the beams on his junior sister's roof when Jiang Yuhuo suddenly spoke up on the fifth count.
"By the way, senior brother, did the sword technique you taught me actually have a name?"
"Why are you suddenly asking about this?" Wen Yizhan asked lazily.
Jiang Yuhuo was engrossed in his book and didn't want to see Wen Yizhan lying lazily on the bamboo couch.
I don't know when it started, but this bamboo couch became Wen Yizhan's exclusive possession.
"Someone told me that the name of the seventh sword move is 'Sun and Moon Shining Together'."
"Who told you that?"
“A senior brother, from Lingxiao Peak.”
Wen Yizhan immediately sat up. "How did you end up running into people from Lingxiao Peak?"
Zhenyang Peak has been invisible in Kunlun Mountain for many years. It has never been valued by other peaks, and they never take anyone with them on missions. My junior sister has never had any dealings with them either.
Wen Yizhan was puzzled, and her voice carried a hint of tension that was hard to describe.
"It was just a coincidence." Jiang Yuhuo noticed Wen Yizhan suddenly sitting up straight and asked, "Senior brother, what's wrong?"
Wen Yizhan didn't know why he suddenly became nervous. To forcefully alleviate the discomfort, he lay back down heavily. "It's nothing. He's right, Jian Zhaoqi's name is this."
He chuckled, "I didn't tell you your name at first because you couldn't recognize all of them. Later, I just used whatever was convenient for me."
Jiang Yuhu nodded. This explanation was reasonable, but it didn't sound quite right to him.
Jiang Yuhuo didn't bring up sword techniques without a reason; she closed the book.
"Senior brother, how about you teach me sword move eight?"
The person on the bamboo couch exclaimed, "Now?"
"Now."
On the Oath-Sword Platform.
Wen Yizhan, sword in hand, leaned against Jiang Yuhuo's shoulder and muttered softly, "Does it have to be today? Your senior brother finally got a day off."
Jiang Yuhuo's idea was also impromptu. She thought that since Wen Yizhan was back, she could try to climb the social ladder a bit more. But seeing Wen Yizhan's unwilling look, she frowned and hesitated for a moment, "But it's only for today. You're leaving tomorrow."
Wen Yizhan sensed reluctance in her words, and her heart instantly warmed. She grabbed her wrist and said with great enthusiasm, "Learn! Let's learn now. When I'm not around, you must practice this move every day, and remember me every time you practice your sword."
Jiang Yuhuo was startled by his sudden enthusiasm. It was good to learn new moves, but it seemed like her senior brother was missing the point.
A moment later, two figures stood facing each other on the platform. One channeled his energy into his sword, causing it to shine brightly, and the wind on the Oath-Swearing Platform seemed to freeze slightly. Wen Yizhan leaped forward, his sword striking out at the same moment. His strength and spiritual energy converged on the sword, thrusting forward with fluid grace. It was impossible to see how many strikes he made; only countless streaks of silver light could be seen dancing in the air. For a time, sword energy crisscrossed, causing the many discarded swords on the Oath-Swearing Platform to emit a buzzing clang.
"Junior sister, watch carefully!" He turned around and smiled brightly at Jiang Yuhuo.
"Xiaozhu Luochi..."
The sword in Wen Yizhan's hand shimmered with light. As he swung it, countless sword lights condensed in mid-air, like candlelight piercing the sky, or like a net of lights forming a heaven and earth in the air.
"The rising sun...opens the gates of the emperor."
The next moment, the sword light converged into a vast expanse of white light, slashing out from the Oath Sword Platform into the cloud-shrouded void. In the distance, the sweeping sword energy cleaved through the clouds, causing the entire sea of clouds to churn.
"The name of this move is 'Breaking the Emperor's Gate'."
On other peaks of Kunlun, disciples practicing swordsmanship stopped their swordplay upon seeing the changing winds and clouds in the sky. Looking at this scene, they exclaimed, "Strange! Which immortal master is practicing swordsmanship? How did they manage to stir up the winds and clouds?"
Meanwhile, the one who stirred up the storm was standing on the Oath-Sword Platform of True Yang Peak, letting out a soft sigh.
Wen Yizhan rested, leaning on his sword.
He hadn't used this move in a long time, and it took quite a bit of effort, but he was willing to put in the effort this time.
Wen Yizhan's eyes were bright, and the wispy bangs on his forehead fell back into his eyes. His face was flushed from exertion. He laughed and transformed back into the dashing and unrestrained immortal lord.
"Well, junior sister, did you remember it?"
Wen Yizhan looked at Jiang Yuhuo with anticipation in her eyes.
Jiang Yuhuo took a while to come to his senses, then stepped forward with his sword in hand, a smirk on his lips, "Senior brother, watch."
Every move he made was exactly the same as Wen Yizhan's earlier actions.
To be able to perform so smoothly and effortlessly after only seeing it once is terrifying. Her comprehension is simply astounding.
For her final strike, her spiritual power was insufficient, and perhaps her control over the subtle details was lacking. She couldn't unleash as many sword intents as Wen Yizhan, culminating in a perfect attack. She adjusted her angle, not striking towards the sea of clouds, but instead propelling her sword intent towards the cliff face not far away, just as she had done many times in the past seven years. However, this time she left an extremely deep sword mark on the cliff face, its indentation far deeper than all the other sword marks on the cliff combined.
After the sound of rocks breaking on the opposite side, Jiang Yuhuo heard a round of applause.
Turning around, Wen Yizhan was clapping and cheering for her with great enthusiasm.
Jiang Yuhuo was not very satisfied. The last move made her realize the gap in her spiritual power. No matter what she did, she could not strike with such great force.
Wen Yizhan was already quite satisfied. The higher the level of the Kunlun Nine Swords techniques, the greater the demand for spiritual energy. Sword intent can be comprehended through personal talent, but spiritual energy requires steady accumulation. Jiang Yuhuo had only cultivated for seven years; it was normal that her spiritual energy wasn't deep enough. Many people entered Kunlun with abundant spiritual energy but could never comprehend sword intent, only wasting their days. His junior sister had such talent; all she needed to do was accumulate it slowly.
"Sigh, Junior Sister, you're learning too fast." Wen Yizhan feigned a sigh, "What if your senior brother has nothing left to teach you in the future, and you, little ungrateful girl, disown me as your senior brother?"
This worry is not unfounded; given her cultivation speed, mastering the Nine Swords is only a matter of time.
Jiang Yuhuo looked at Wen Yizhan's eyes, which were smiling like two crescent moons, and shook his head, "No, senior brother will always be senior brother."
Seeing his junior sister's serious expression, Wen Yizhan felt uncomfortable. He looked away and coughed lightly, "Don't worry, your senior brother will always have new moves to teach you."
"However, Junior Sister only recently learned Sword Move Seven, why is she already practicing Sword Move Eight?"
Jiang Yuhuo had a plan in mind. She wasn't blindly seeking quick results; she simply wanted to obtain something.
The only way she knew to obtain that item was through this year's Immortal Sect Grand Competition. Now that the competition was just around the corner, if she could improve her sword skills, her chances of success would be much greater.
"I want to participate in this Immortal Sect Competition."
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Author's note: Happy holidays everyone! [heart emoji]
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