Chapter 17: Legends of the Martial World

Under the sunlight, the undulating mountain ridges were covered in a scorched yellow, looking as if they had been roasted.

A large river threaded its way between two mountain ranges. Beside the river was an official road, where hundreds of martial experts were currently galloping on fiery steeds, kicking up a trail of dust. Some of the warriors had large banners mounted on their backs, with the characters for 'Seven Peaks' displayed on them, exuding an aura of thousands of troops.

They wore uniform azure martial robes with the right sleeve hanging loose and fluttering like a flame, while the left shoulder bore a bronze pauldron in the shape of a tiger’s head. Everyone’s expression was ice-cold, and their suppressed murderous intent was unmistakable. The group moved through the mountains like an azure dragon, seemingly unstoppable.

A young man at the very front turned to look at the middle-aged man beside him and asked, "Master, aren't we making a bit too much of a fuss? By sending so many people, even if Lin Xunfeng hasn't retired from the martial world, we could still take him down."

The middle-aged man was named Yue Zhenchuan, and he was one of the seven alliance leaders of the Seven Peaks Alliance. He possessed profound martial arts and a massive reputation in the martial world.

Faced with his disciple’s question, Yue Zhenchuan’s expression did not change as he replied, "Mo Jiujiao has been gone for so long without returning; something must have happened. Although Mo Jiujiao isn't particularly powerful, the fact that the Clear Firmament Sect dared to take him down means they are prepared to oppose the Seven Peaks Alliance. The world’s situation is shifting like clouds and wind, and dark currents are surging in the martial world. Our Seven Peaks Alliance cannot be careless. Sometimes, total ruin begins with a single small failure."

At these words, the young man nodded. Although he disagreed in his heart, he did not dare to disobey his master.

"By the way, Master, just how powerful is that Lin Xunfeng? To think he could occupy the entire Taikun Mountain Range; their territory is nearly as large as our Seven Peaks Alliance’s." The young man changed the subject, and the Seven Peaks Alliance disciples behind them also turned their gaze toward Yue Zhenchuan.

"The Clear Firmament Sect’s ability to occupy the Taikun Mountain Range was the work of Lin Xunfeng’s master—the founder of the Clear Firmament Sect. That man was a figure who once made the entire martial world tremble with fear. Unfortunately, he eventually suffered from cultivation deviation and disappeared without a trace. Lin Xunfeng only inherited thirty percent of his power, yet that was enough for him to guard the Clear Firmament Sect. Back then, even when three of our alliance leaders joined forces, we were unable to take him down."

Yue Zhenchuan’s tone was calm; when speaking of these events, his voice held no fluctuation.

The young man asked curiously, "Did you take action back then as well?"

"Not being able to fight Lin Xunfeng is one of the great regrets of my life. I hope I will run into him this time."

With that, Yue Zhenchuan cracked his whip, making his steed let out a neigh before accelerating. The other Seven Peaks Alliance disciples could only follow suit, and the entire group sped up.

...

At noon, with the bright sun hanging high, the disciples were gathered in the courtyard, their gaze fixed on Zhang Yuchun.

Currently, Zhang Yuchun was wearing a brand-new sect robe. It was an azure garment with wide sleeves and a tightly bound waist; although it wasn't exquisite or luxurious, wearing it made him look upright and incredibly spirited.

For the disciples of the Clear Firmament Sect, such a robe was already quite good; after all, they usually wore old clothes covered in patches.

Zhang Yuchun shook his wide sleeves and looked at Li Qingqiu, asking, "Eldest Brother, aren't the sleeves a bit too large? In a duel, I'm afraid they might restrict our movements."

Li Qingqiu laughed. "I think they look very good. Besides, our Clear Firmament Sect is not a sect that loves to fight and compete. This is only a preliminary design; we will continue to upgrade the robes in the future to make them look better and better."

Although it was still far from the temperament of an immortal cultivator, it clearly looked different from an ordinary martial artist, and that was enough; they could slowly improve it later.

The tailor standing nearby saw that Li Qingqiu was satisfied and let out a sigh of relief. The workload for this job was a bit large, and he already regretted taking it.

Subsequently, Li Qingqiu called over Yang Jueding and the seven disciples from the mountain village and walked into the back forest together.

Huang Shan, Yu Lin, and the other five stood in a row, looking curiously at Li Qingqiu and wondering what instructions he had for them.

Li Qingqiu swept his gaze over them and said, "After I took over as Sect Leader, the Clear Firmament Sect will take an entirely new path. Although we still use the old sect name, in reality, it is already a brand-new sect. Whether it is martial arts or rules, everything is completely different. You are the first batch of disciples recruited by the new Clear Firmament Sect. As the number of disciples grows in the future, you will inevitably have to shoulder more responsibilities."

The seven disciples all became solemn, and their bodies straightened.

Li Qingqiu gave a satisfied smile and said, "Regardless of your aptitude or comprehension, future disciples will always respect you. However, I will not let you enjoy only an empty reputation. From today on, I bestow a title upon you: you shall be the Seven Sons of Clear Firmament. Yang Jueding will pass on his ultimate internal arts to you and will grant each of you an ultimate skill, striving to give you the capability to roam the martial world before you reach adulthood."

Yang Jueding, standing nearby, spoke up: "Next, I will pass on my true martial arts to you—no longer those amateur tricks from before. This is a treatment that other disciples will not receive."

Ever since he began practicing the Primordial Scripture, he had been struck with awe. He felt that the value of his entire life's martial arts couldn't compare to the Primordial Scripture, so he didn't mind offering them up.

The Seven Sons of Clear Firmament had already tried practicing the Primordial Scripture but had achieved no results so far; switching to his martial path was also a good thing, as they wouldn't waste any more time.

While making this promise, Yang Jueding also felt somewhat nervous in his heart.

'If even I can't master the Primordial Scripture, that would be truly unbearable.'

"Sect Leader, we will absolutely not fail your expectations!"

Huang Shan was the first to speak, his voice filled with excitement, and the other disciples also looked at Li Qingqiu with gratitude.

After experiencing the blow of failing at the Primordial Scripture, they had originally thought the Sect Leader would give up on them and just let them endure for ten years before sending them down the mountain. They hadn't expected the Sect Leader to want to focus on nurturing them; how could they not be moved?

Li Qingqiu offered a few more words of encouragement before turning and leaving, handing the remaining matters over to Yang Jueding.

Yang Jueding was not Jiang Zhaoxia; Li Qingqiu wouldn't let him focus solely on his own practice. He had to spend half of his time teaching the disciples.

Li Qingqiu did not return to the inner sect grounds but walked down the mountain, preparing to continue practicing the Ghost-Immortal Rejuvenation Needle.

He had already gained a preliminary understanding of this needle technique, but he was still a long way from truly being able to perform it.

...

Early the next morning.

Li Sifeng, Li Sijin, and Xu Ning went down the mountain together; they were heading toward the subterranean Spirit Lake to cultivate.

Li Sifeng walked in front holding a wooden branch, using it as a sword and swinging it as he walked, occasionally muttering the names of moves.

Li Sijin and Xu Ning walked behind holding hands, chatting about the Seven Sons of Clear Firmament practicing martial arts. Starting from this morning, the Seven Sons of Clear Firmament would no longer practice with them, which was an arrangement made by Li Qingqiu.

Aside from Li Sijin, both Li Sifeng and Xu Ning already possessed the ability to protect themselves, and Xu Ning would occasionally spar with Li Qingqiu to gain combat experience; this was also why Li Qingqiu felt safe letting the three of them go down the mountain together.

The failure of the Seven Sons of Clear Firmament with the Primordial Scripture made them realize that the scripture was indeed not simple, and they cherished their cultivation time even more because of it.

"A sword to slay the flood dragon... there is no one in the world like me..."

Li Sifeng reached a hillside and leaped, landing on the grass below before dropping to one knee and swinging his "sword" in a very cool pose.

He kept his head lowered, immersed in the feeling, as if he had truly slain a flood dragon.

Suddenly.

He seemed to sense something and snapped his head up. Ten zhang away in the mountain forest, a crowd of people was actually watching him. These people wore identical robes and were leading horses; they looked at him from a distance like a pack of ghosts, making his heart tremble.

"Why have I run into people again..."

Li Sifeng secretly lamented his luck. Last time he met Du Xuanfeng’s pair, and this time he met even more warriors. His luck was simply too bad.

The aura of that group clearly showed they were not ordinary people.

Li Sifeng instantly thought of the Seven Peaks Alliance or the Azure Cult. He turned his head toward Li Sijin and Xu Ning, who were about to come down from the hillside; without needing him to signal, Xu Ning had already spotted the hundreds of warriors from the Seven Peaks Alliance.

The sight of hundreds of people leading horses in the forest was very visually striking, making it seem as if there were far more than a few hundred.

Li Sifeng hesitated over whether to run, but if he ran, it would be equivalent to telling them that they were disciples of the Clear Firmament Sect.

If they didn't run, they could use their youth as a cover to gather information.

At that moment, he saw a middle-aged man jump down from his horse and walk toward him. The middle-aged man also raised a hand, signaling the others to wait in place.

Seeing this, Li Sifeng let out a sigh of relief. Since the other party didn't immediately move in force, there was room for conversation.

If things went south, he could even seize this leader to force his subordinates back.

Having made up his mind, Li Sifeng became more composed, though he still intentionally put on a nervous expression.

"What should we do?" Li Sijin asked in a low voice. This was the first time she had faced so many people, and she felt instinctively afraid.

Xu Ning remained expressionless and whispered, "Follow the rules we set before. We are from somewhere else and got lost on the mountain while traveling with our parents."

Li Sijin nodded, but she couldn't help but lean closer to Xu Ning, clutching her sleeve.

The middle-aged man walking toward Li Sifeng was none other than Yue Zhenchuan, one of the alliance leaders of the Seven Peaks Alliance.

As he approached, Yue Zhenchuan tried to put on a gentle smile. As he walked, he spoke: "Little brother, don't be nervous. We are from the imperial authorities, passing through here, and we wanted to ask you for directions."

'Imperial authorities?'

Li Sifeng looked toward the forest behind him and suddenly spotted a banner with the characters for 'Seven Peaks' embroidered on it. Even after discovering this, Li Sifeng’s expression did not change at all; he remained nervous and restless.

Although Li Sifeng did not answer, the fact that he didn't run made Yue Zhenchuan even more at ease.

Yue Zhenchuan approached and stopped seven paces away from Li Sifeng. He asked with a smile, "Little brother, where are you from? Why are there no adults with you?"

The three of them had already changed into the Clear Firmament Sect robes, but Yue Zhenchuan had never seen them before, and the robes did not have the words 'Clear Firmament' embroidered on them. He instinctively assumed that the three of them were from a nearby village or town and that their families were quite well-off.

Li Sifeng answered cautiously, "We are from Plum Mountain Township. we were going with our uncles to visit some distant relatives but accidentally got lost and are currently looking for them."

Yue Zhenchuan laughed. "Then I will help you find them. But can you tell me first—have you encountered anyone else on the mountain recently?"

"Anyone else? Let me think... there actually was..."

Li Sifeng feigned thought, but before he could finish his sentence, he lunged at Yue Zhenchuan like a young leopard.