Chapter 257: Yun Xi, bastard brother
Deep within the Sword Sect, dusk painted the sky. In the rugged wilderness, a chubby old man with frosty hair carried a young girl on a sword to the mountainside, stopping in front of a cave with a stone tablet bearing the word Tomb at the entrance.
Inside the cave, faintly visible amidst the dust and rust, were numerous spirit swords stuck in the mud, accompanied by white bones, creating a desolate scene.
Bound tightly by Immortal Binding Locks and carried on Zhuang Yan’s shoulder, Yun Xi glanced around, feeling overwhelmed. She quickly swallowed and blinked, feeling helpless, and said,
“Elder Zhuang, isn’t it useless for me to come along? Let me go here. I don’t have a flying sword, so I’ll return to Xiri Peak. By the time I get there, you’ll have finished your business. You don’t have to worry about me telling the other elders. Look…”
“Hehe…” Zhuang Yan chuckled lightly and asked, “After coming all this way, don’t you want to see your big brother?”
Yun Xi deeply felt that seeing Yun Kunwu would likely end in disaster for her. Trembling, she replied,
“I’ve heard that Brother Yun is dignified and talented. He successfully formed his baby core at the age of thirty, making him the pride of the immortals. But look at this: it’s been centuries since we siblings last saw each other… At least let me go back and freshen up. It might give Brother Yun a better impression.
“Don’t worry, Kunwu will like you just how you are,” Zhuang Yan assured her.
Yun Xi’s expression changed as she struggled on his shoulder and cursed,
“Ah… Damn it!! Old man Zhuang!! Let me go!! When I get back, if I don’t tell my father about this, he’ll chop you up!!”
“But the third miss has to go back as well,” Zhuang Yan chuckled.
Watching the sunlight fade as they descended deeper into the cave, tears began to well up in Yun Xi’s eyes,
“Sister Pei! Big sister!… Help!!”
As their figures gradually disappeared into the cave’s darkness, the rock walls muffled her cries for help. After walking along the dark mountain road, the narrow passage suddenly opened up. Zhuang Yan raised his hand, and several white auras illuminated the space ahead.
They stood at the edge of a cliff, overlooking a dense forest below that seemed worlds away. Above them, the rocks sealed off any sky view, while strange trees filled the forest, and a river meandered through it. The most prominent feature was the countless broken spirit swords embedded in the ground.
Yun Xi, experiencing the Thousand Swords Pond for the first time, was awed by the swords and their apparent consciousness, their stories echoing in her mind.
“These swords…”
“Oh!” Zhuang Yan looked at Yun Xi’s bewildered expression and asked, “Can the third miss understand what these swords are saying?”
“…What do you mean?”
“Your qualifications may be average, but your sword quality is exceptional,” Zhuang Yan said as they descended into the forest. “Unfortunately, compared to my disciple, you still have a long way to go.”
Alongside the dilapidated spirit swords, they walked until they reached a sword with a completely black blade. Zhuang Yan placed Yun Xi on the ground and took out a bloody clay figurine from his storage bag, placing it beside the sword.
“Kunwu, you’ve been waiting for a long time. Over the past century, I’ve pleaded with Yun Tianchong countless times to rebuild your body and release you from the Sword Sect. Unfortunately, he believes that even if you were released, you would still be a threat. No matter how much I try to convince him, he refuses to agree.”
“… ”
“In the path to immortality, fortune and talent are paramount. Even the elders from the Tai Bai Sect and Xuanxing Sect are different from the luck and talent you possess. The journey to immortality is vast, and every cultivator aspires to witness the pinnacle of this path. Regrettably, I won’t be able to witness it, but you can…”
Zhuang Yan seemed resigned, reaching out to grasp the sword’s hilt. Meanwhile, Yun Xi, who was lying on the ground munching dirt, quickly turned and shouted, “Wait!”
“Miss Third, do you have anything else to add?”
“Zhuang Elder, look, your disciple is about to regain freedom. Shouldn’t we celebrate a bit? It’s so dreary here. Why spruce it up a bit? Hang some red lanterns and throw a banquet. When Brother Yun comes out, he’ll be happy to see it.”
Zhuang Yan rolled his eyes at her, grabbed the sword’s hilt, and infused it with spiritual power. Green, spiritual energy flowed from his aged body like streams, converging on the sword’s hilt.
The once-quiet forest erupted into strong winds, and a dark aura permeated the air. The ancient swords planted in the ground trembled as if frightened, echoing countless sword cries within the mountain.
Amidst the howling wind, the evil aura surged towards the blood-colored clay figure Zhuang Yan had placed aside, guided by his Nascent Soul.
The clay figure transformed into a naked youth with long golden-white hair. Yun Kunwu slowly opened his eyes, revealing emotionless red orbs. He exhaled a mist of blood, then glanced at Yun Xi behind him, a hint of murderous intent flickering in his eyes, leaving Yun Xi breathless and tense.
But soon, his eyes softened, and he gently said, “Master, you’ve made a grave mistake. Father won’t approve of releasing me.”
Zhuang Yan was puzzled, pausing before asking, “Kunwu!”
“In my youth, I was reckless and made a big mistake, so Father personally confined me here for reflection. It’s not my intention to be released now. Master, you should return and apologize to my father.”
“…”
Yun Kunwu turned to Yun Xi, loosening her bound hands and feet. “Sister, you’ve suffered because of me. As your brother, I apologize.”
Yun Xi was stunned momentarily, then slowly reached out, weakly replying, “Thank you!”
“You’re welcome,” Yun Kunwu smiled, then returned to the dark spiritual sword before Zhuang Yan. “Sister, could you drip two drops of blood on this hilt?”
“Why? What for?”
“Father’s blood restriction binds this sword. Without your blood to activate it, my soul won’t be able to return to the sword. As your elder brother, I hope you can help me reseal myself into the sword. Will you?”
Yun Xi timidly shrunk her head, gazing at her older brother’s smiling face. She inexplicably thought of Pei’s senior brother, feeling that her brother bore a striking resemblance to Ye Anping, especially in physique and demeanor.
She hesitated momentarily, then asked, “What if I refuse?”
Yun Kunwu fell silent before smiling, “Sister, there’s no need to be so tense. How about this… I can prove that I’m not what you think.”
With that, he turned to Zhuang Yan and gently closed his eyes.
Zhuang Yan felt puzzled, but the next moment, despite Yun Kunwu’s body and arms remaining still, a black sword light flashed directly past Zhuang Yan’s left arm.
Thunk!
Zhuang Yan gritted his teeth, taking a step back, clutching his bleeding shoulder in disbelief as he looked at Yun Kunwu. “Kunwu!”
Yet, Yun Kunwu’s eyes showed no mercy. “Master, since you’ve broken the sect’s rules, you must be punished. As a descendant of the Yun family, I must punish you for acting against the Sword Sect.”
He then turned to Yun Xi, speaking gently, “Sister, just two drops of blood essence, and I can return to the sword. Or… perhaps you also want to defy Father’s wishes and release me now?”
Zhuang Yan half-knelt, nursing his bleeding shoulder. Through gritted teeth, he said, “Kunwu, Master Yun Tian is in seclusion for Po Xu. Tianxing is overseeing the sect now. You don’t need to be so cautious.”
“…,” Yun Kunwu paused, his smile disappearing instantly. “Master, why didn’t you say so earlier? You made me misunderstand and waste time with an incompetent girl!”
“Kunwu, if you don’t ask, how can I know what you’re thinking?”
“After being my master for so many years, you still can’t understand my thoughts. You’re not qualified to be a master, hahaha…”
With a twisted smile, he turned to Yun Xi, whose face had turned pale, and said, “Just forget what I said earlier. Since Father is in seclusion, the situation is…”
“Hiss…”
Upon hearing this, Yun Xi took a deep breath, her gaze flickering to the black spiritual sword between Zhuang Yan and Yun Kunwu.
Yun Kunwu was probably afraid of her father arriving, hence his gentle behavior earlier. His mention of the two drops of blood essence being able to seal him back into the sword must be true.
With that thought, Yun Xi rushed forward, biting her wrist and spreading her blood toward the dark spiritual sword. Yun Kunwu saw this and hurriedly reached out to stop her. “Wait!!”
But blood couldn’t be stopped by hands. Three drops of blood fell on the sword’s hilt, and instantly, malevolent energy seeped out, surging towards Yun Kunwu.
Yun Kunwu instinctively tried to dodge, but the evil energy caught him, and he screamed in agony, “Ah—”
Zhuang Yan wanted to help but was blocked by the evil aura.
Seeing Yun Kunwu’s suffering, Yun Xi wiped her nose, quickly rubbed her wrist wound, and chuckled, “Haha—what a fool you are. Go back and stay locked up for another few hundred years.”
After Yun Xi spoke, Yun Kunwu, who had been screaming, burst into laughter, “Ahhh—hahaha.
Yun Xi was immediately shocked: “Huh!”
On the other hand, Zhuang Yan changed his previous puzzled expression and said, “Disciple, I brought her here just to use her Yun family bloodline to remove the restriction on your sword. Why go to such lengths?”
“Just some hobbies. Master, since your left hand is useless anyway, wouldn’t it be better to cut it off? Haha…”
With his body enveloped in dark spiritual energy, Yun Kunwu turned to look at Yun Xi again. Seeing her expression of despair, he began to smile gradually.
Yun Xi started to step back slowly, but after a few steps, she felt something poke her buttocks. Turning around, she saw a silver-white spiritual sword. She immediately grabbed the hilt of the sword and pulled it out forcefully. She had expected it to require a lot of effort, but to her surprise, it came out with a gentle tug, breaking from the ground and landing in her hand. However, she exerted too much force and ended up sitting on the ground.
Seeing this scene, Zhuang Yan, who was nursing his left arm, couldn’t help but show a bit of astonishment and prepared to step forward to deal with Yun Xi. But Yun Kunwu raised his hand to stop him, saying, “Oh! That’s rare.”
Realizing that she had likely pulled out a valuable item, Yun Xi felt more confident and quickly stood up with the sword, looking at the two of them warily.
“Darn it!! What kind of creature did Dad give birth to?”
She turned and rushed backward, causing Yun Kunwu to pause in confusion. Yun Kunwu shook his head and reached for his pitch-black spiritual sword, then swiftly approached Yun Xi.
With a clang, Yun Xi immediately lifted the spiritual sword in her hand. However, the force was so great that she couldn’t react in time, and she was sent flying backward, hitting another spiritual sword with her back and coughing up blood.
“Ugh… damn it…”
At that moment, rocks suddenly fell above the cave, making a noise like an earth dragon stirring. Yun Kunwu, walking towards Yun Xi with a sword, stopped in his tracks, looking around with a hint of confusion.
“Master, what’s happening?”
“I think… your other sister must have joined forces with the elders of the Sword Sect to forcefully break the restrictions on the forbidden area, attempting to enter and destroy your soul.”
“What cultivation levels do the elders of the Sword Sect have now?”
“The highest is old man Tianxing, in the late Nascent Soul stage.”
“After all this time, old man Tianxing is still in the late Nascent Soul stage?” Yun Kunwu raised an eyebrow disdainfully. “I remember when I was imprisoned here. Wasn’t he already a late Nascent Soul cultivator?”
“Disciple, who among the cultivators in the world can match your qualifications? You were promoted to Nascent Soul at thirty, the only one among the four realms.”
Yun Kunwu smiled faintly. “That’s true, hahaha… Then I’ll wait here. Sister, any interesting stories from the past hundred years? Hmm… why did she faint? She only took a hit from me! She didn’t even use her full strength, truly worthless…”
Yun Xi closed her eyes tightly, cursing inwardly, “Damn! What cultivation level do you have? What cultivation level do I have? It hurts so much…”
At the same time, she prayed, “Please don’t discover that I’m pretending to be dead!! Sister Pei!! Elder Tianxing!! Please come and save me!! What kind of bastard did that stinky dad give birth to?”
