Volume Two: The Weapon Manual, Chapter 128: Young Lord of Three-Flower Valley

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“Oh? Has someone touched the Dao here? Congratulations!”

Sensing the strange fluctuation of magical power, a surprised voice came from before the tower gate. Everyone turned and saw a young nobleman in a pink robe walking toward them.

The pink robe, worn by a man, somehow did not make him look effeminate. That alone showed how righteous his features were: bright, clear eyes beneath swordlike brows, a fair, handsome face, and a tall, seven-foot frame that gave him an almost immortal air.

As he advanced step by step, pink petals formed from magical energy streamed behind him, dancing along with his movements. Meng Qiaoqiao and the other young woman stared at him, their eyes going wide.

“Who might you be?” Li Que stepped in front of Liu Xiaoyi. Having just broken through to a higher realm, Liu Xiaoyi was still dazed and needed time to absorb and stabilize his newfound power. He could not afford to be disturbed.

The man did not answer. Instead, he immediately saw through Li Que’s identity.

“The Li family of the Golden Light Mantra. I never imagined it would have declined so far. Had you been in the Great Wilderness, perhaps you might still have had a chance to rise again. Sadly, the land of the Nine Provinces leaves no room for even a grain of sand.”

Li Que was displeased. Having his family’s circumstances exposed to his face, he flushed deeply.

“You have sharp eyes, sir. My family may have fallen into hardship, but it is still not something an ordinary cultivator may insult.”

“Do not be angry. Our two families share the same lineage and have been friends for generations. Do you not remember?”

At the height of its glory, the Li family had aided many great clans trapped in dire circumstances, helping them survive one crisis after another. In doing so, it had forged many bonds of goodwill.

Li Que had studied the records of his family’s history in depth. After searching his memory carefully, he finally recalled the place.

“You are from Three Flowers Valley?”

At this, the corners of the man’s lips lifted.

“I am Hua Shaoqing of Three Flowers Valley. It is a pleasure to meet you all.”

Three Flowers Valley’s influence in the Great Wilderness firmly surpassed that of the Hall of the Sacred Lord. After all, it was a native sect of the Great Wilderness, unlike the Hall of the Sacred Lord, which had migrated there after drifting over from the Southern Wilderness.

Judging from Hua Shaoqing’s attire, his status within Three Flowers Valley was surely far from ordinary. Li Que cupped his hands and offered a respectful apology.

“My eyes failed me. I did not recognize an old friend just now. Please forgive me. Since no one remains in my family, those old connections are rarely mentioned anymore. I understand well enough that when the man leaves, the tea grows cold.”

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How could a sect of such stature be willing to stand on equal footing with a solitary man like him? Li Que knew his place and had never gone to visit those former acquaintances. He had no desire to humiliate himself.

Hua Shaoqing sighed.

“How powerful the Li family once was. Yet in the short span of a hundred years, it has fallen to such a state. Brother Li, why have you come to challenge the Heaven-Gazing Court? Could it be that you hope to win the beauty’s hand?”

Li Que explained, “The lord of Earth-Mound City has offered a single Radiant Insight Pill as a bargaining chip. He wants the heroes gathered here to protect his young master and help him claim the Heaven Lantern. We have come to try our luck as well.”

He made no effort to conceal anything from Hua Shaoqing. This showed how deep the bond between Three Flowers Valley and the Li family truly was—far deeper than the ties between the Li family and its other former allies.

Upon hearing about the Radiant Insight Pill, Hua Shaoqing’s expression turned thoughtful. Such a treasure was worth competing for: a rare prize that could be encountered only by chance. Had he been in Li Que’s position, he would not have missed the opportunity either.

“Then have you come for the Saintess? If I remember correctly, Three Flowers Valley has no shortage of women as beautiful as celestial maidens. And with your own handsome appearance, Brother Hua, you certainly need not worry about finding a companion.” Li Que asked the question in puzzlement. Whether in appearance or cultivation—far beyond his own—Hua Shaoqing had no reason to be here.

Hua Shaoqing replied, “To be frank, Brother Li, I have come for the same purpose as she has. I am here to retrieve a spiritual weapon. It lies within the Mixed-Origin One-Qi Tower at the very summit. It is an inkstone.”

As he spoke, he pointed toward Shangguan Baozi. Although Baozi was not wearing the mask shaped like a mountain deer, Hua Shaoqing still saw through her identity at a glance. She was astonished.

“You mean the One-Qi Inkstone? How did you know the spiritual weapon was here?” Shangguan Baozi pursed her lips and asked warily.

“The Weapon Mound’s secret arts are not the only means of tracking spiritual weapons. Three Flowers Valley has its own methods as well. I must ask you not to compete for it when the time comes. The One-Qi Inkstone is of great importance to me.” Hua Shaoqing smiled gently at her, and the beauty of that smile could have toppled kingdoms. Shangguan Baozi was rendered speechless for a moment.

Spiritual weapons were scattered throughout the world. Although the Weapon Mound possessed many spirit binders, the weapons they had collected over the years amounted to no more than a third of the total. The rest were either held by various sects or had yet to reveal themselves, circulating secretly among the people.

There were even contemporary master smiths capable of forging weapons whose might rivaled that of spiritual weapons, confusing the spirit binders’ searches.

Only spiritual weapons listed on the Register of Weapons could open the Weapon Mound and reveal the secret hidden within—thereby saving all under heaven from an impending catastrophe.

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Yet many powers, including Three Flowers Valley, believed that the Weapon Mound was merely a fabricated tale, created so that someone could claim all the spiritual weapons for themselves. The few weapons preserved within Three Flowers Valley were all ranked near the very top of the Register of Weapons. The higher a weapon’s ranking, the greater its power.

The One-Qi Inkstone ranked exactly ninety-ninth. Even Shangguan Baozi had failed to sense its presence, yet Hua Shaoqing had identified it without difficulty. The competitive spirit of the future foremost spirit binder of the Weapon Mound suffered a slight blow.

After this period of consolidation, Liu Xiaoyi had completely mastered the power of his current realm. When he rose, a faint aura surrounded his body, pushing the air away in layers.

There were sixteen realms of cultivation, and each possessed its own unique insights. In the Dao-Touching Realm, if one could comprehend a single Great Dao and cultivate it to sufficient depth, one could attempt to break through the shackles of mortality and ascend into an immortal.

Countless cultivators had suppressed their cultivation at this realm, desperately seeking a Great Dao, only to die without ever glimpsing its true form. Once they passed beyond the Dao-Touching Realm, comprehending a Great Dao became possible only through some ethereal stroke of destiny.

The Eight Immortals of the Daoist tradition had mastered the Great Dao while still in the Dao-Touching Realm. Their very real stories stood before everyone, and it was because of them that the fervor for cultivation had swept across the world.

Immortality was a fatal temptation to every living being beneath heaven. People devoted their entire lives to becoming immortals and attaining eternal life. Many cultivators even fell into demonic paths in their pursuit of greater cultivation and deeper understanding of heaven and earth.

What had drawn Hua Shaoqing here was the unusual fluctuation that had appeared when Liu Xiaoyi broke through. At Three Flowers Valley, he had witnessed countless senior and junior disciples reach this realm, yet Liu Xiaoyi alone had produced such a phenomenon.

Seeing Liu Xiaoyi return to his senses, Hua Shaoqing eagerly asked, “Fellow Daoist, do you feel anything different from before?”

Liu Xiaoyi rotated his arm and discovered that it felt light and nimble. With the slightest movement, sword qi seemed ready to burst forth. He sensed that something had changed, but could neither explain nor describe it clearly.

“There are some differences, but I do not know where to begin. I have no idea how to explain them to you.”

At this, Hua Shaoqing’s eyes went blank. Only after a brief pause did he recover.

“The Great Dao. Fellow Daoist, if one day you are to prove the Dao, please send word to Three Flowers Valley. No matter where in the world I may be, I, Hua Shaoqing, will surely come to witness the ceremony!”