Before Song Qianji could respond, Xian Jianchen threw his head back with uproarious laughter: "Haha, how ridiculous! Why would this venerable need to offer any benefits to take on a disciple? My charismatic personality and peerless elegance alone are enough to make people willingly submit and follow!"
Calligrapher Sage: "Haha, how utterly ridiculous! So there really are ancient monsters who practice youth-preserving arts and become this narcissistic. In this world, I only acknowledge you, Xian Jianchen, as being more conceited than me!"
Chess Devil: "Haha, absolutely ridiculous! This charismatic personality and peerless elegance you speak of—how come I've never witnessed them? Could it be that, like your Lifebound Sword, you've forgotten them at the edge of the continent?"
Sword God: "You're so ill your old eyes are failing—of course you can't see it! This venerable won't hold it against you!"
They argued rapidly, completely ignoring everyone else. Xian Jianchen fought vigorously against two opponents, Chess Devil held the home advantage, and Calligrapher Sage fanned the flames.
Song Qianji felt as if he had suddenly stepped from the serene and elegant little bamboo house in the Valley of a Hundred Flowers into a noisy, chaotic underground gambling den—one that happened to raise five hundred ducks, all quacking wildly around him.
"Since King Song has arrived, we'll leave the gentleman in your care." Several people at the gaming table quietly stood and approached Song Qianji to greet him. "We'll take our leave first."
"Shop assistant? Shopkeeper? What exactly is going on here?" Song Qianji had seen them at the black market shop and Huawel Sect and had some dealings with them.
The black market shop crew wore expressions of complicated emotions.
Thinking back to their first meeting at Huawel, Song Qianji had been a mere Outer Sect disciple who traded his sword for a zither. Now, just a few years later, he had become the renowned King of Thousand Canals, followed by thousands.
"Today the gentleman suddenly felt inspired to visit Chess Devil. With the Academy Head and Courtyard Overseer overseeing Azure Cliff Academy, we closed our respective shops to accompany the gentleman here, to... um..." Shopkeeper Hua cleared his throat, "...to play cards."
Song Qianji looked over: "But those two are clearly playing separately."
Calligrapher Sage was playing pai gow, while Chess Devil was playing a different card game.
Shopkeeper Hua lowered his voice: "They were playing together at first, but it nearly came to blows, so they had to play separately. We've been taking turns keeping them company and acting as dealers—it's been truly unbearable. King Song, your timing is perfect." He suddenly pushed the young assistant. "Haven't you greeted him!"
The assistant awkwardly called out "King Song."
Song Qianji nodded: "The child has grown taller."
"You're not that much older than me," Xiao Zhuo muttered, but was dragged away by the collar by the shopkeeper.
The black market shop crew scurried away, and the bamboo house gambling den suddenly emptied.
A cool breeze blew through the half-open window, carrying the fragrance of flowers from outside.
Chips, dominoes, and dice lay scattered across the gaming table, bathed in the shallow crimson glow of dusk.
As Song Qianji listened to the arguing, his attention was caught by the hydrangeas outside the window. Just as he moved closer to admire them, he heard Xian Jianchen shout:
"There is only one sun in the sky! He will only ever have one master in this lifetime, and that is this venerable!"
Chess Devil and Calligrapher Sage simultaneously turned to Song Qianji: "You tell us!"
Xian Jianchen appeared confident on the surface, but transmitted a death threat through voice projection: "You know what to say!"
After a moment's thought, Song Qianji asked a question.
This question so shocked the three supreme seniors that they fell silent for a long time, leaving the bamboo house utterly quiet.
Song Qianji stepped forward and repeated: "At this time of year, if wheat grows too lush with small ears and can't be harvested, how can it be remedied?"
Xian Jianchen murmured to himself: "My disciple has finally been driven mad by you people! You owe me a disciple!"Chess Devil: "Don't try to pin this on me. I think you're the one who drove him mad."
Calligrapher Sage, ever inquisitive: "As the saying goes, 'spring planting, autumn harvest.' Why do you speak of harvesting wheat in summer?"
"Spring wheat is harvested in autumn, but winter wheat is harvested in summer," Song Qianji chuckled. "Actually, I've long since apprenticed myself to many masters."
The three were taken aback, clearly surprised.
"My sensitivity to vitality allows me to care for a courtyard of flowers and plants, but the path of farming has no end. It was my masters who passed down generations of farming knowledge to me—when to apply fertilizer, when to weed, which plants prefer shade, which crops crave sunlight... A field's yield isn't determined by hard work alone; it also depends on whether Heaven lends you luck. The strength of a gust of wind, the timing of a raincloud's arrival, the migration route of a flock of birds—any of these can affect months or even a year of toil, deciding the survival of thousands."
"I've studied seed fields and four-season greenhouses, cultivated superior strains, and increased yields per acre. These things could never have been accomplished by me alone, shut away and theorizing. Even with the world's greatest treasures at my disposal, it would have been impossible without all my masters laboring diligently, refusing to yield to the whims of nature."
"You mean..." Xian Jianchen frowned. "This venerable one seems to understand."
"I don't quite follow," Chess Devil said. "Young man, who exactly have you studied under?"
Calligrapher Sage sighed: "Studied under whom? The myriad people of Thousand Canals, all things between heaven and earth! What they can teach you far surpasses what us old men ever could."
Learning from sages, from the common people, from the natural world.
Did formal master-disciple relationships matter to Song Qianji? Did the prestige of a school matter to him?
The answer was obvious—he could take anyone as his master, even a farmer who only knew grafting.
But if he couldn't learn anything from you, even if you were undefeated across the land, with sword skills unmatched by any peer, he wouldn't consider you his master.
Why cling to sectarian prejudices or obsess over the glory of a single school?
Xian Jianchen snorted lightly and turned away, refusing to look at Song Qianji.
Calligrapher Sage suddenly clapped his hands: "This master heard that you saved my Green Cliff disciples in Blood River Valley, and used Painted Spring Mountain to suppress the rampaging Chaos, saving countless lives."
Song Qianji picked up the teapot from the gambling table, poured a cup of hot water, and bent to offer it to him: "That is true."
Chess Devil had only drunk plain water in recent years, and his bamboo cottage lacked guest refreshments.
Yet when Calligrapher Sage took the water bowl and sipped, he behaved as if drinking celestial nectar or supreme tea, happily exclaiming "Excellent!" three times in succession:
"This master is deeply gratified!"
Chess Devil burst into coughing, breathing heavily.
Song Qianji stepped forward to pat his back.
Chess Devil spoke hoarsely: "This master also heard that the 'Dragon Slaying Formation' reappeared at Red River and killed a man-eating great serpent. Was it you who directed others to set up that formation?"
"Indeed it was," Song Qianji offered water again.
"Excellent! You haven't wasted the formation manuals this master left you! This old heart is greatly comforted!"
Xian Jianchen, brows knitted and arms crossed, made a sour sound through clenched teeth: "This back-and-forth performance—what are you two acting out?"
Song Qianji acted as if he hadn't seen him: "At Blood River Valley, I also used the Seven Wonders Zither."
Mention of the Seven Wonders Zither made the three's expressions shift slightly, revealing the unfathomable aura of senior experts.
The small bamboo cottage fell into temporary silence.
"This matter, this master knows of it." Calligrapher Sage looked out the window. "When Heartless was young, he believed that music without emotion lacked beauty—that only when the player harbored extreme love, hatred, or obsession in their heart could they play emotionally resonant melodies. He taught this to his eldest disciple Jiangyun, which made Jiangyun's temperament become extreme."Later, in order to break through a bottleneck, he switched to cultivating the 'Path of Heartlessness', teaching his second disciple Wangshu through heavenly principles and ritual systems. Wangshu suppressed herself at every turn, not daring to take a single misstep. In their youth, these two disciples admired their master and strove to fulfill all his expectations. But the Heartless One only loved his zither, blind to the living people before him. After Wangshu and Jiangyun lost all hope, they engaged in fierce magical confrontations, each taking on disciples of their own, eventually reaching an irreconcilable deadlock.
"The Heartless One spent his life failing his disciples, using them as experiments on his path of cultivation. In the end, he died due to his disciples' rebellion, and his sect fractured into pieces. Who can he blame? It's simply retribution!"
Chess Devil interrupted him: "Why talk about such things in front of the younger generation?"
"Are we not already useless bodies? Are you still taboo about the word 'death'?"What do I have to avoid?" It's just that this young man hasn't taken any disciples yet—I'm afraid of scaring him!"
While they spoke of Qin Xian, Xian Jianchen remained silent, as indifferent as he had been during his nighttime visit to Thousand Canals.
Song Qianji smiled bitterly, thinking to himself, Though I've never taken disciples, I've already experienced the difficulties of being both a master and a father.
"Esteemed seniors, is there any wish I can fulfill for you?" he asked.
Chess Devil's eyes lit up: "Do you know how to play East Continent cards or West Continent mahjong?"
Song Qianji was taken aback: "I don't know either."
Calligrapher Sage asked: "How about big dominoes or small dominoes?"
"This... I don't know those either."
"Backgammon?"
"Still... no."
Chess Devil lamented in despair: "Song Qianji, you've been the King of Thousand Canals for nothing!"
Xian Jianchen suddenly spoke up: "Why not play 'Ascension Chess'?"
"I've never played it," said Song Qianji.
"It's extremely simple!" Chess Devil opened a wooden box and took out a large, colorful sheet resembling a map, a dice, and four colored chess pieces—red, orange, yellow, and green.
The three quickly chose their pieces, leaving Song Qianji to be pushed into playing with the red piece, utterly bewildered.
Chess Devil said: "No need to learn—you'll get it as soon as you start. I'll roll the dice first. Three! I move three spaces. Good luck—this space brings me to Qi Refinement Level Three! I get three hundred Spirit Stones as a reward."
He drew three pieces of paper from the wooden box, each inscribed with the number one hundred.
Calligrapher Sage rolled a five. Xian Jianchen rolled a six, moving the farthest.
Song Qianji began to understand.
This colorful sheet represented a cultivator's life journey.
Some spaces depicted Spirit Stones, others traps. Landing on them allowed one to choose whether to hoard land, dig for Spirit Stone Mines, or, with bad luck, land on a dark trap space and instantly become destitute.
In the later stages of the game, having more Spirit Stones allowed one to rapidly increase cultivation, while those without money could only progress step by step by rolling the dice.
"If no one cheats, isn't this just gambling on luck?" Song Qianji found it amusing.
Given their sensitivity to changes in Spirit Qi, if one person cheated while rolling the dice, the other three would surely notice.
"When heaven's luck comes, rely on it; when it doesn't, depend on strategy. Look, I've landed here—I can choose to take five hundred Spirit Stones or force one person to move back three spaces," Chess Devil said without hesitation. "I choose Xian Jianchen!"
Xian Jianchen retorted: "Are you insane?!"
Chess Devil: "I've been insane for ages—is this the first you're hearing of it?!"
Calligrapher Sage: "I move four steps. Hey, what's written here? 'Every player at the table gives me one hundred Spirit Stones'! Haha! Why are you all still standing there? Pay up!"
The small bamboo house descended into chaos, livelier than a New Year's celebration.The three of them schemed against each other, dragging one another down until they could barely move. Song Qianji honestly rolled the dice, hoarded land, accumulated resources, and cultivated, starting late but finishing first. After ten rounds, he had already traversed most of the map and was on the verge of reaching the end, poised to "ascend" with perfect merit.
Xian Jianchen stomped his feet: "This dice is rigged. How could I, the exalted one, not have the best luck? Impossible!"
By now, Song Qianji possessed the most land and wealth. He could have sold his land for a huge profit, used the money to move ten steps forward, and ascended directly.
But he didn't sell the land, instead using his money to develop wilderness. Thus, his land holdings grew larger and his wealth increased.
Chess Devil was speechless: "How did you turn the Ascension Game into a land reclamation game?"
Calligrapher Sage hinted frantically: "You could lend me money now. After I ascend to the higher realm, I'll work to repay you."
Sword God interjected: "Don't listen to his nonsense! This old man is taking advantage of your ignorance. In this game, the first to ascend is the winner! The last one is the loser!"
But Song Qianji said: "I can lend you money, but you'll have to trade land for it."
They continued playing. Song Qianji helped the other three ascend, remaining alone—occupying all the land on the entire map!
After celebrating his victory, Xian Jianchen vaguely felt something was amiss.
In this single game, three ascended winners all had to work for the sole loser to repay their debts.
Xian Jianchen broke down: "What do you need so much land for?!"
Song Qianji muttered in defense: "...Not for anything special, I just couldn't help myself."
Calligrapher Sage chuckled twice and stretched lazily: "We came for pleasure, and we leave satisfied."
The bamboo house remained unlit. The last rays of the setting sun vanished as the moon quietly climbed over the mountain ridge.
Chess Devil rubbed his somewhat blurry eyes: "It's getting dark."
No matter how glorious the sunset, it eventually sinks into the rivers. Night must always fall.
Chess Devil tapped the Ascension Game map: "Young Song, we're all leaving now, and you've taken so much land. The mortal realm is in your hands."
Song Qianji suddenly said: "Since you've chosen me, why don't you kill a few people for me and give me their luck and legacies?"
"Have you gone mad?" "Impossible!" Calligrapher Sage and Chess Devil exclaimed in unison, their expressions shocked.
"I was joking." Song Qianji laughed.
Xian Jianchen pondered briefly, then transmitted a message to Song Qianji: "You've developed a mental block after being provoked by Wuxiang in the secret realm. I brought you to meet old friends to resolve it—shouldn't you thank me? Shouldn't you bring me a bowl of water too?"
Song Qianji, master of balancing acts, smiled superficially while transmitting his reply: "Maybe in your next life."
Xian Jianchen gritted his teeth: "It's dark, we should get going. Stop dawdling!"
Calligrapher Sage said to Xian Jianchen: "Don't bully my disciple on the road."
Chess Devil told Song Qianji: "The night road is slippery. Let your elders fight first. If he can't win, you run quickly."
Xian Jianchen stormed out in anger, slamming the door. Song Qianji bid farewell to Calligrapher Sage and Chess Devil.
As he left the bamboo house, he heard the sound of frantic card shuffling from inside.
"Goodbye." Song Qianji glanced back once more.
They returned along the mountain path they came by, with Li Ying seeing them off.
Night descended gradually, the starry river shining brightly.
The evening breeze gently brushed through the flower bushes, carrying a warm, intoxicating fragrance.
Li Ying lowered her head: "Senior Brother Song, why don't you stay here to recuperate? Even if Huawel Sect comes looking, they wouldn't dare attack directly. We could delay them awhile—I have many strategies..."
Song Qianji merely gazed at her gently. Her voice grew softer until she could no longer continue.Li Ying suddenly choked up: "I know you must leave. I'm truly grateful for the poems you wrote to cheer me up on the Star-Picking Platform. Thinking back now, those were the happiest moments of my life... I'm not as daring as Miss Chen, nor as tenacious as Immortal He. I seem rather useless."
The final three words of the Hero Summons remain an unsolved mystery in the Cultivation World to this day.
Whatever you thought or desired in your heart, you could fill them in. Thousands of people had thousands of different ways to complete it.
Only Li Ying kept the words "plant potatoes" hidden in her heart, never telling anyone.
"Your life has just begun. If things don't go your way temporarily, just wait a while longer. Every flower has its season—there's no need to compare yourself with others. Immortal Li, you've grown up. Both the sorrows and joys of this world shall have your share." Song Qianji smiled, "Moreover, Immortal Li is the most skilled immortal I've ever seen at playing chess. You'll surely beat me someday."
Li Ying looked surprised: "You really think so?"
"Of course."
Li Ying's almond-shaped eyes were red, tears hanging from her lashes as she nodded firmly: "I'll work hard."
"Hey! Are we leaving or not? Should I light some wedding candles and arrange some flowers for you two?" Xian Jianchen shouted loudly.
The melancholic atmosphere vanished completely.
Li Ying's face flushed red. Without another word, she quickened her pace.
...
As soon as they left the no-flight zone of Purple Cloud Mountain, Song Qianji mounted the Shadowless Sword, carrying Xian Jianchen westward.
"On such a splendid starry night, flying so fast—aren't you wasting this beautiful scenery and fine evening?" Xian Jianchen swung his legs while sitting.
Song Qianji didn't respond.
He had said all he needed to at Purple Cloud Temple and couldn't be bothered to utter another word now.
The deeper the night grew, the brighter the stars shone, and the more solemn Song Qianji's expression became.
As they traveled westward, the clean, moist air gradually turned dry. Rolling dust mixed with the wind pattered against the Spirit Qi shield Song Qianji had raised.
Eight hundred li west of Purple Cloud Mountain lay a desert.
Because its sand dunes flowed incessantly like a rushing river, people called it the Flowing Sands River.
Song Qianji flew above such a river, with no one in sight for miles around. Only the mournful howl of wind filled his ears, like ghosts wailing and wolves crying.
"You can't fly out of here," Xian Jianchen suddenly said. "Save your strength."
Song Qianji stared at the Milky Way, his face dark as water: "Shut up!"
He flew at high speed using Sword Kinesis Flight, his back already soaked with sweat.
Amid the piercing night wind, another voice suddenly sounded: "Your master is right."
The voice was aged and faint, yet it pierced through the fierce wind, clearly reaching Song Qianji's ears.
No human figures could be seen along the Flowing Sands River, and there wasn't a single person around the Shadowless Sword either.
The voice actually came from the Milky Way above.
Through the floating clouds, Song Qianji saw the stars in the sky tremble, then rapidly enlarge, converge, and approach in the next moment.
It seemed as if the entire Milky Way was crashing down upon him.
"Old Ancestor Zhao's Milky Way Veil—long time no see." Xian Jianchen stood up from the flying sword and greeted loudly.
Song Qianji stopped his sword and finally saw those "stars" clearly.
The stars hung beyond the sky's curtain—of course, the bright spots weren't real stars, but Old Ancestor Zhao's Lifebound magical artifact.
This set of magical artifacts consisted of three hundred sixty-eight meteorite fragments, controlled and connected by invisible forces.
From the moment they left Purple Cloud Temple, these "stars" had formed an encirclement, following them all the way to the Flowing Sands River.
"Ah, here we go again." Song Qianji murmured.
Xian Jianchen: "Why do you say 'again'? You've never seen this before."Song Qianji thought to himself, in his previous life when the Zhao Family deployed this set of magical artifacts to besiege him, the clan had already declined, and Old Ancestor Zhao had been worn down to death by him.
The people controlling the magical artifacts couldn't unleash the full power of the treasures, allowing him to carve a path through.
But now, the half-step Transformation Stage Old Ancestor was still alive, and when the Milky Way Veil was unleashed, it truly resembled a glorious Milky Way!
That aged voice rang out again: "The Sword God still remembers this old man."
He only spoke to Xian Jianchen, ignoring Song Qianji entirely, as if he didn't consider him worth noticing.
Xian Jianchen laughed: "Easy now, easy now. We're old acquaintances after all. You're too kind to specially see me off—just let me pass quickly."
"Xian Jianchen! Fifty years ago, I had just broken through to the half-step Transformation Stage, my realm unstable, and you severely injured me! Preventing me from ever stepping into the true Transformation Realm in this lifetime. You severed my path to immortality, cut off my ascension to the great dao—did you ever imagine that one day you would fall into my hands!"
The furious roar echoed repeatedly, causing countless "stars" to tremble in unison.
A thin, gloomy-looking old man slowly descended from above, stopping twenty zhang away from them.
He stood upon the largest and brightest "star" within the Milky Way Veil.
Xian Jianchen waved his hands repeatedly: "You can't blame me for that! How you achieved that half-step Transformation Stage—you know perfectly well! Besides, if I'd known today would happen, I'd have cut you down with one sword strike fifty years ago!"
Hearing this, Song Qianji felt grateful he wasn't Old Ancestor Zhao, otherwise he'd be infuriated to death by this scoundrel.
The old man roared: "Enough nonsense! Where's your sword?"
Before his words faded, surrounding meteor fragments shimmered with eerie blue flames, shooting rapidly toward them.
An intensely sinister chill crept up Song Qianji's spine.
"Now it's your sword." Xian Jianchen flicked his sleeve, a flash of lightning streaking through the air.
Song Qianji raised his hand to catch the sword, his palm burning as if set ablaze, instantly filling with warmth.
This sword was the complete opposite of the Shadowless Sword—its blade was broad, thick, and heavy.
While maneuvering the Shadowless Sword to dart about, he wielded this sword to block attacks.
But then he heard Xian Jianchen say: "This sword is named Spring and Autumn, it's been with me for a hundred years. Spring and Autumn is a king's sword, specially made to slay petty villains and suppress sinister artifacts. Back then, I used this very sword to trap this old fool forever at the half-step Transformation Stage!"
"Only a king's heart can wield a king's sword. With this sword in hand, you must never act rashly."
As he spoke, the man actually clasped his hands behind his back, making no move to help whatsoever.
Old Ancestor Zhao threw his head back and laughed: "Xian Jianchen, how arrogant and brutal you were in the past, and now you can only hide behind your disciple!"
The attacks from the Milky Way Veil grew increasingly fierce. Song Qianji found himself in constant peril, with no time to fight with Xian Jianchen, forced to listen to his lecture.
"The sword art of the Spring and Autumn Sword consists of sixty-eight characters in total. I'll only say it once—you must remember it firmly. First, concentrate your mind and stabilize your intent..."
"Can't you speak faster?!"
Song Qianji wielded the Spring and Autumn Sword, locked in fierce combat with a powerful foe, while behind him Xian Jianchen's speech remained unhurried.
One urgent, one calm—an unusual contrast between inner and outer—the sword art characters engraved themselves into his heart, one by one.
The Spring and Autumn Sword emitted a deep, resonant hum, its sword momentum growing smoother.
Song Qianji merged the sword dao of his past and present lives, descending like a celestial god.
The Milky Way Veil was truly sliced open, creating a path.
Xian Jianchen laughed: "Fifty years later, you can't even stop my disciple—what point is there in you living this lifetime!"
A shrill, piercing howl erupted as the old man spat a mist of blood from his mouth.
The Milky Way Veil, stained with fresh blood, erupted in a crimson glow.Song Qianji failed to dodge in time and was struck in the chest by a fragment, immediately vomiting a mouthful of black blood.
He felt an extreme cold, with only the Spring and Autumn Sword in his hand radiating warmth.
Xian Jianchen stood by with folded sleeves, watching him desperately grip the heavy Spring and Autumn Sword as he continued breaking through westward.
The Spring and Autumn Sword seemed to have become an extension of his right hand, tamed by his unwavering resolve!
"How many of your remaining seven swords are you still holding back? What are you waiting for?" After what felt like an eternity, the Shadowless Sword trembled violently as Song Qianji's Spirit Qi neared depletion.
"I'm waiting for snow. Look, the wind has risen," Xian Jianchen said.
"Have you lost your mind?"
How could it snow in summer? How could it snow over the Quicksand River?
Song Qianji had no choice but to keep fighting when suddenly he felt a faint chill on his face.
A rain cloud drifted over, hovering directly above Song Qianji in the sky.
This cloud stood higher and broader than the surrounding Milky Way Veil.
Old Ancestor Zhao's face turned deathly pale: "Impossible!"
Without any thunder or lightning, as the fierce wind swept through the dark clouds, snow began to fall.
For the first time in a century, snow descended upon the Quicksand River.
Each snowflake was a Talisman.
The curtain of snow swept forward from Purple Cloud Mountain, forming a colossal Grand Formation that connected heaven and earth.
Powerful Array Power merged with Talismanic Power, flooding the entire realm.
The Milky Way Veil trembled uncontrollably.
Ethereal blue flames were extinguished by the snowflakes, falling from the sky while leaving trails of faint smoke.
Bathed in the light snow, Song Qianji's mind suddenly cleared.
He had already realized something, and his expression turned even grimmer than Old Ancestor Zhao's.
"This snowfall is their way of seeing you off on your final journey," Xian Jianchen said.
Song Qianji stood with sword in hand, his sleeves flapping in the wind.
The falling snow drifted into the Quicksand River, rustling as it fell, becoming words of farewell.
Must the path of spring and autumn ambitions, the road of kings, always be witnessed by those who came before?
The Milky Way Veil suffered heavy damage. Old Ancestor Zhao recalled the remaining fragments, tightly shielding himself as he attempted to escape the range of the snow.
"You won't fly out of here," Song Qianji said. "Save your strength."
The previously dull Spring and Autumn Sword suddenly blazed with brilliant light, illuminating half the sky.
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