Chapter Five: The Debate on the Five Peaks

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  A flower appeared before his eyes, and Lu Qing felt the pressure on him lighten. He looked closely and found that Xuan Qing had already appeared in front of him to take over the pressure he was bearing. At the same moment, the divine sword floating in mid-air suddenly stood upright. The divine sword was spirited and fearless in the face of the challenge from the purple thunderbolt in the high sky. The purple-red flame that had been hidden on the sword body rose again, and in an instant, it turned into a giant fire sword as long as a zhang. A fierce sword intent shot up to the sky and transformed into an invisible wave that pierced through the roof.

  Under the stunned gaze of the townspeople, the golden mist that had condensed above the Lu family's residence quickly transformed and in the blink of an eye coalesced into a massive golden sword composed entirely of smoke. The sword was about ten zhang long and its shape was identical to the purple-red divine sword floating in the Sword Casting Room. Amidst the crowd's astonished gazes, it shot upwards with a piercing howl, its intense sword hum echoing through the sky as it traversed a thousand zhang in height in an instant.

  Obviously, the dark cloud was enraged by the provocative move of the divine sword, and another loud rumbling sound erupted. The entire town of Chaoyang trembled at this moment. Another purple lightning bolt as thick as a water bucket flashed on the surface of the clouds. In an instant, the giant sword and the lightning collided with each other. However, strangely, there was no massive explosion that people would have imagined when covering their ears. At the point of contact between the two, a faint blood-red glow flashed by, and the golden giant sword slowly pierced into the dark cloud under the intense obstruction of the lightning.

  Inside the stone house, Xuán Qīng's eyes were profound and deep. The black cold rock that formed the roof couldn't block his gaze at all. The divine sword in front of him was also deeply shocking to him. As everyone knew, the phenomenon that accompanied the birth of a Golden Heaven-level divine sword was nine thunderclaps. Generally, a Golden Heaven-level divine sword could only trigger one to five thunderclaps. A truly top-grade Golden Heaven-level divine sword would be born under six to nine thunderclaps, just like the current Purple Mist Sect's sect master's sword, Liè Yáng, which was forged under seven thunderclaps and had given rise to the sect's powerful dominance for 500 years.

  But at this moment, the sword that was about to be born had far exceeded Xuan Qing's understanding, and it actually took the initiative to attack the heavenly thunder. How unthinkable is this? Such spirituality may not even be comparable to Lieyang Sword.

  Lu Yun, you have finally surpassed your ancestors! Xuan Qing couldn't help but sigh in his heart. Looking again at the thousand-meter high sky, the thunder and lightning flashing dark clouds suddenly stopped moving after the golden giant sword entered, and the thunder was no longer heard for a moment. After a few breaths, the dark clouds churned up again, only to find that the purple lightning on the surface of the clouds had disappeared without a trace in front of the people of Chaoyang Town.

  With a burst, as if the rupture of a thin membrane, a brilliant golden light pierced through one corner of the dark cloud, and then two, three, in an instant countless golden lights penetrated the dark cloud, shooting out in all directions. And this piece of dark cloud that covered thousands of square feet was also disintegrated into nothingness in the next moment.

  Inside the sword-casting room, the floating divine sword felt that the threat had disappeared and calmed down. The light flames wrapped around the sword body hid again, slowly falling from mid-air to the ground. At first glance, it looked like an ordinary purple copper sword, without the previous majestic momentum.

  An hour later, in the main hall of the Lu family, "No, you can't take this divine sword away -" Lu Qing tightly hugged the divine sword that had already been wrapped in three-color deer skin, his eyes fixed firmly on the old man sitting in front of him, who was actually Xuanqing, who had been ordered to come down the mountain to retrieve the sword.

  In the main hall, Yan Ruyu's face was pale as she leaned against the right-hand seat, but her eyes were also very firm as she looked at Xu Qing on the main seat. "Qing'er is right, this is the only thing Yun left for my mother and me. I know that Elder Xuan has always taken good care of my Lu family and had a special relationship with my late father, but this time Ruyu cannot obey, I hope Elder Xuan will withdraw his order."

  He let out a soft sigh, and Xuan Qing shook his head: "But the problem is not whether I can take back the decree of fame, this was just jointly decided by the four peak masters and the sect master. It's hard to get the sect master to take it back, and this matter was first raised by that old scoundrel Xuan Ming, and has already been linked to the Five Peaks Sword Debate five years later. It concerns the fundamental interests of our Purple Mist Sect, so it's hard to get the sect master to change his mind."

  Xuan Qing continued, "In exchange for the Divine Sword, the Sect Master may have given your Lu family a considerable position. Among them, the offerings of this Chaoyang Town were previously divided in half and are now fully allocated to you. Yun Xiaozi was also promoted to Sect Guardian, and he can pass it on to Lu Qing. In addition, if you have any reasonable conditions, you can also propose them, as long as the sect can handle it."

  "We don't want to," Xuan Qing said, and Lu Qing flatly refused, "This is the pinnacle of Father's life-long sword casting, and it's the only thing he left for us. No matter what kind of protection or worship, we don't want any of it."

  She turned her gaze to Yan Ruyi, and Yan Ruyi also had the same intention. She only saw her speaking sincerely: "Please, Elder Xuan, consider the fact that my Lu family has been dependent on Chaoyang Peak for generations, think of a way, even if we can give up all these conditions, just to keep a little bit of my late husband's legacy. Ruyi is deeply grateful and hopes that the elder will fulfill this wish." After finishing speaking, she stood up and bowed deeply, and Lu Qing on the side saw her mother do so and also made the same gesture.

  Xuan Qing saw the situation and no longer spoke out, instead lowering his head to think deeply. The hall fell silent, with only the flickering candlelight remaining. After a while, under the expectant gaze of Yan Ruyi and her mother, Xuan Qing finally lifted his head: "Wanting the Sect Master to take back the decree is impossible. Although your Lu family has made great contributions to the sect over the past thousand years, compared to the sect's power and interests, I think you also know the choice of the Sect Masters. This isn't disregarding the merits of your Lu family's three generations as founding elders; only the sect's prosperity can guarantee your Lu family's eternal stability. This is an unavoidable fact. As for keeping this sword safe, there is now only one way."

  "What's going on?" Yan Ruyu asked somewhat urgently, her usual composure lost from her face.

  "Five Peaks Debate Swords——"

  "What's this 'Five Peaks Discussing Sword'?" Lu Qing asked in surprise.

  "Wu Feng Lun Jian, that is the grand event of our Zixia Sect, held once every ten years," Xuan Qing said with a hint of nostalgia, stroking his sparse white beard. "Every decade, our Zixia Sect holds a full-sect swordsmanship conference, limited to young disciples under the age of thirty. Firstly, it is to inspect the cultivation status of the new generation of disciples. After all, the future of the sect does not depend on us old guys who are about to rot, but on the young people. The mainland belongs to the young, and only if the young generation makes a name for themselves can the sect have a better future. In addition, our sect will widely issue sword invitations, inviting all the noble guests from nearby sects to come and watch, which can also demonstrate the status and strength of our Zixia Sect to some extent, consolidating the prestige accumulated over thousands of years."

  He paused, turning his gaze to Lu Qing: "And this divine sword is precisely the reward personally bestowed by the Sect Master as the champion of the Five Peaks Sword Meet, and to a large extent, it is related to the success or failure of this Five Peaks Sword Meet."

  Yan Ruyu furrowed her brow, not daring to confirm: "Elder's meaning is to let Qing'er compete for the first place in the Sword Conference." How could this be possible? Yan Ruyu was well aware that her son Lu Qing had only just started practicing swordsmanship three years ago. Although he had exceptional talent and had risen from a sword slave to a sword attendant in just three years, it was almost impossible for him to achieve anything at the Sword Conference five years later. However, Yan Ruyu also knew that the Lu family wanted to develop steadily within the Zixia Sect, so they couldn't openly disobey the sect's orders this time and could only take a roundabout approach. Moreover, the current Zixia Sect was in the pre-heating stage of advancing, and any slight carelessness might lead to power struggles that would result in severe consequences. Therefore, during this period, if anything discordant appeared, it would likely be ruthlessly eliminated.

  He nodded in agreement: "Not bad, wanting to quickly stabilize the Lu family that has lost Yunzi now is also the only way at present. Otherwise, within ten years, the original status of the Lu family will shrink by more than half." Xuanqing's words were very clear, and indeed so. For a subordinate who has lost his ability, no matter how great his past merits, he will soon lose his reuse, and the favors he received in the past will gradually disappear. Although this is cruel, it is still a reality in the weak-eat-strong world of the Ten Thousand Great Mountains.

  With clenched fists, Lu Qing felt the cruelty of this world for the first time. There was no room for human emotions; everything was based on one premise: sufficient strength and ability.

  "The meeting I attended——" Lu Qing raised his head and stared at Xuan Qing.

  Looking calmly at the young man with an unyielding and determined gaze, a faint, imperceptible smile appeared on Xuan Qing's face. "Don't worry, no matter what the outcome is, I will do my best to teach you for these five years. The Lu family can't lose its reputation either. After everything is settled in half a month, I'll take you to Chaoyang Peak and accept you as my 16th disciple."

  Yan Ruyu's face changed upon hearing this. The 16th generation disciple, wasn't this just taking Lu Qing as an inner sect disciple? "Elder, I'm afraid this doesn't conform to the rules..."

  He calmly waved his hand: "The generation is determined by strength, I think Qing Er will not disappoint me." After finishing, he stared straight at Lu Qing below.

  As soon as Xuan Qing looked at him, Lu Qing felt that the other's gaze was like a solid object, piercing through his entire body, making all secrets transparent in this moment. His heart couldn't help but be shocked and lose color, but thinking of Lu Yun's passing and the cold treatment the Lu family would face, as the current sole heir of the Lu family, a deep sense of responsibility and pride prompted him to stand firm and meet Xuan Qing's gaze without retreating.

  After a long time, Xuan Qing finally nodded in satisfaction. (Seeking recommendations and collections)