Chapter One Hundred and Nine: Xu Xian

Long Yun dared not utter another word. The palms of his hands, tightly clasped with Yan Qingqing’s, were slick with cold sweat. Yan Qingqing seemed to sense the overwhelming presence beside them and dared not even breathe.

The entire space was suffocatingly silent; even their breaths sounded loud and clear.

After a long while, the chamber echoed with the sharp clang of metal striking metal, followed by the dragging of iron chains across stone slabs.

“Boy, do you know who I am?” came a voice, heavy with the weight of countless years, tinged with melancholy that stirred a deep pang in one’s heart.

Long Yun replied cautiously, “Could you be a senior from my Jade Sword Sect?”

Only a disciple from Jade Sword Sect would be familiar with the Star Absolute Killing Sword Technique, and upon learning that he belonged to the Heart Sword lineage of Jade Sword Sect, would show such emotional fluctuations. Long Yun could think of no other.

“Who is the current sect leader of Jade Sword Sect?” the voice asked, indirectly confirming its own identity.

Long Yun felt a surge of excitement. Meeting a fellow disciple here was fate, especially at this moment—it felt like an old friend found in a distant land.

“It is Sect Leader Shangguan Yu!” Long Yun answered truthfully.

The voice fell silent for a moment, then sighed deeply before breaking into hearty laughter, “Unexpected indeed, time changes all. Yu has become the sect leader—time spares no one!”

Long Yun shivered at the mention of Shangguan Yu as “Yu,” realizing this elder must have belonged to an older generation of the sect.

“You are young yet have reached the Innate Realm; that is no small feat. As a disciple of the Heart Sword lineage, you are the chief disciple!” the voice continued.

Long Yun shook his head, “I have left Jade Sword Sect.” He then recounted the deceit during the Qingzong Hunting Tournament and how he had slain three disciples of Qingzong.

The voice burst into laughter again, the sound of chains clashing against the floor resonating: “Good lad, you have spirit! Qingzong has dominated the Qingshan faction for so many years, yet you have bested them. They were too arrogant. You’ve even stirred this old bone to passion! Ha ha!”

Hearing this, Long Yun’s slight resentment toward the elder vanished. He asked earnestly, “Senior, is there a mechanism on this stone chamber? I shall rescue you at once!”

The elder sighed, “Alas, it is useless. This stone door is sealed by a spell set by Feng Wuji himself. No one else can break it. Even if you entered, you could not sever the Hundred-Tempered Vajra Chains binding me. Boy, knowing Jade Sword Sect still has successors, no matter if I am trapped here for five hundred years, what does it matter?”

Long Yun frowned, exchanging a glance with Yan Qingqing. Grasping her jade-like arm, he approached the stone door, placing a hand gently upon it.

A rebounding force shot from the door, snapping his arm back. Then, the runes inscribed on the door began to glow and flow rapidly.

“A fine formation. Senior, you cannot break this seal either?” Long Yun asked.

The elder shook his head. “The Vajra Chains have bound my pipa bone, preventing me from unleashing my full strength. Otherwise, in my prime, such a mere seal would never hold me.”

Long Yun’s expression darkened. “Senior, I possess Qingzong’s Green Grain Edge Sword. It should be able to sever the Vajra Chains. But I will need your aid to break this seal.”

“You have the Green Grain Edge Sword?” the elder asked, astonished.

Long Yun nodded. “I obtained it from the Demon Realm Illusion. Qingzong sought to seize this divine treasure, which led me to kill four of their disciples. What do you think, senior?”

“The Green Grain Edge Sword is Qingzong’s heirloom, able to slice through iron like mud. While the Vajra Chains are said to be merciless, they likely cannot withstand the sword’s sharpness. If you possess it, that’s excellent!” The elder’s voice held a trace of delight.

“Then, senior, I need your cooperation. Together, we shall break this seal from inside and out,” Long Yun said.

The elder laughed heartily. “You need not call me ‘senior.’ My name is Xu Xian. If you don’t mind, call me your patriarch. I, too, hail from the Heart Sword lineage.”

“Xu Xian?” Long Yun’s mind stirred with recognition. Suddenly, a flash of shock crossed his eyes as he blurted out, “So you are the first genius of the Heart Sword lineage five hundred years ago, the one with the supreme sword body who shattered the Sword Stone Dimension—Senior Xu Xian!”

“Ah, what use is dwelling on the past? No matter how glorious I once was, today I am but a prisoner. It falls to you, the younger generation, to rescue me,” Xu Xian sighed.

Long Yun chuckled, “You have always been the idol of our Heart Sword lineage. No wonder you vanished after obtaining the supreme sword technique from the Sword Stone. To be persecuted by Qingzong to this extent!”

Xu Xian sighed deeply, “I was foolish and arrogant, believing that mastering the Star Absolute Killing Sword Technique made me invincible. At the Hunting Tournament, just like you, I was youthful and reckless, resentful of Qingzong’s oppression of other clans. I fought them fiercely.”

He paused, then continued, “But unlike you, I only gravely wounded them, while you decisively killed them outright.”

“Ha!” Long Yun smiled sheepishly. “In hindsight, we have far more in common than I thought. But how were you imprisoned here, Patriarch?”

As they spoke, Long Yun’s internal energy began to slowly radiate toward the stone door. With his strength, he could not shatter Feng Wuji’s seal outright; only persistent effort, like water wearing through stone, could erode it.

Xu Xian said, “Back then, I severely wounded Feng Wuji’s most favored disciple, seizing all his points and claiming first place. Qingzong, having held first place for so many years, could not allow a Jade Sword disciple to take advantage. They made things difficult. But my master and the sect leader protected me, sparing my life.”

“Yet Qingzong did not end matters there. They secretly abducted my wife, Yan Ru Yu, a junior sister from the Yan clan, and tortured her to death.” His voice trembled.

Yan Qingqing instinctively gripped Long Yun’s arm, biting her lips as tears streamed down her cheeks.

“When I learned this, it was as if struck by five thunderbolts. If not for me, Ru Yu would not have died. That very night, I secretly left Jade Sword Sect. With my unparalleled sword body and the Star Absolute Killing Sword Technique, I stormed into Qingzong. Though only at the third level of the Innate Realm’s Tongtian stage, Qingzong sent countless disciples to attack me. I fought mercilessly, slaying many, including those bastards, reducing them all to minced flesh!”

“Later, the six elders of Qingzong under Feng Wuji captured my gravely wounded self and imprisoned me here. Feng Wuji told me Jade Sword Sect would always be their vassals, never rising again. He would send all Jade Sword Sect’s talented disciples, generation after generation, to join me in captivity, so I would pay for past foolishness!”

“My rage was immense; I once thought to end it all. But I endured, feeling I had failed my sect. Though I avenged my wife, I only brought trouble to my sect. So I clung to life, finding a new path. Miraculously, in these five hundred years, I broke through the Innate Realm’s shackles to reach that mysterious realm, but my pipa bone remains locked, unable to escape. Now, meeting you today, perhaps my fate is not yet sealed!” Xu Xian’s voice carried a hint of excitement.

Long Yun sighed. Xu Xian’s plight mirrored his own. Once the pride and hope of Jade Sword Sect, now imprisoned for five centuries by Qingzong’s jealousy. Others might have gone mad, but Xu Xian endured through sheer will—a perseverance truly moving.

Moreover, he had broken through the Innate Realm’s barrier, reaching that secret realm. Truly, he was Jade Sword Sect’s greatest genius of five centuries past.

“By the way, how did you enter? Has Qingzong not discovered you? Now that we have met, there’s no need to rush your rescue. You must escape first!” Xu Xian suddenly remembered and said.

Long Yun shook his head. “Don’t worry, Patriarch. Qingzong is currently too occupied to attend to me. Still, we must escape quickly. Patriarch, lend me your strength; together, we shall break this seal!”