First Immortal of the Sword

Su Yi was already in the late-stage Spiritual Manifestation Realm.

His cultivation had grown by two small realms since defeating five Spiritual Revolution cultivators on the tenth day of the third month.

Both his cultivation base and his combat prowess had undergone a shocking transformation.

How could he possibly be interested in dueling a Spiritual Incarnation cultivator?

The way he saw it, such a duel was fundamentally dull.

Weng Jiu froze, stunned. “Fellow Daoist Su, Shen Suiyun is absolutely not just some ordinary person.”

He described Shen Suiyun’s legendary accomplishments, then said, “I can say with certainty that Shen Suiyun could defeat older-generation Spiritual Revolution cultivators like Huan Tianxu too!”

“Oh,” said Su Yi perfunctorily. His utter disinterest was readily apparent.

Weng Jiu rubbed his nose. “The nation’s cultivators are all debating which of you is stronger, but if you can’t be bothered to duel Shen Suiyun…”

He’d only just said this when a voice rang out beyond Azurecloud Court: “Shen Suiyun of Hidden Cloud Sword Mountain requests that Fellow Daoist Su compete with me on Goldenscale Lake!”

Every word was like the roar of a dragon or tiger, and his voice reverberated throughout heaven and earth.

Azurecloud Court was built on Azure Dragon Lane. Goldenscale Lake was only about ten thousand feet away.

Shen Suiyun’s shout startled countless people throughout the surrounding area. 

“Shen Suiyun? My heavens! The peerless sword cultivator first on the Ranking of Stars has come to challenge Banished Immortal Su?”

“Hurry! Let’s go to Goldenscale Lake to watch!”

“Inform the others! Say Shen Suiyun has come to challenge Banished Immortal Su. This duel is sure to shake the nation!”

Similar commotions arose throughout Azure Dragon Lane.

Azurecloud Court.

Weng Jiu had a strange look on his face. “Fellow Daoist Su, he’s already here. I’m afraid it’ll be difficult to refuse him…”

Su Yi stood by the side of the pond, casually tossing moon clams to the spirit carp. He said distractedly, “Why can’t I refuse him?”

Weng Jiu mulled it over, then said, “If you don’t go, everyone will assume you’re afraid of battle. It will only boost Shen Suiyun’s prestige, and it will have an enormous impact on your reputation.”

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“Vanity, that’s all.” Su Yi shook his head. “There’s no greater taboo than getting overly invested in your reputation. Go tell Shen Suiyun that if he’s here to get revenge for Hidden Cloud Sword Mountain, he should come here directly. I won’t mind granting him death.”

With that, he took out his wicker chair, lay down, and started soaking in the sun.

I need to find an opportunity to refurbish the chair and add some calming divine materials, as well as some that nourish the blood and qi. That’ll make it even more comfortable… As he relaxed, materials suitable for refining a wicker chair flooded his mind.

Like Cloudwater Silk, Striped Star Rattan, Ambergris Wood, among many others. Using them would make his wicker chair even more comfortable than it already was.

This wicker chair had accompanied him ever since his time in the Great Zhou’s Cloudriver Prefectural Capital. Su Yi could never bring himself to get rid of it.

It wasn’t that the chair was all that special, but that no matter where he went, whenever the mood struck him, he could sit comfortably in it and relax.

It was all about comfort. Comfort was worth spending a few divine and spiritual materials for.

Weng Jiu watched in a daze as Su Yi sprawled out in his wicker chair and rested his eyes. Only then did he dare say with certainty that Su Yi truly wasn’t the least bit concerned about Shen Suiyun.

Otherwise, how could he possibly be so unmoved? 

“Then… I’ll go meet with him now.” Weng Jiu turned and left Azurecloud Court.

Wen Xinzhao asked curiously, “Brother Su, I remember you saying how eager you were to encounter a worthy opponent, so why are you ignoring this one?”

According to Weng Jiu, Shen Suiyun was an absolutely first-rate figure.

“As time passes, people change,” whispered Su Yi. “On the tenth day of the third lunar month, I would have been delighted to cross blades with Shen Suiyun, but now… I have no interest at all.”

Wen Xinzhao pressed her lips into a smile. This was indeed the Su Yi she was familiar with.

Suddenly, someone called out from beyond the gates, “Su Yi, I have something urgent to discuss with you!”

Ye Yunlan!

Su Yi was stunned. He’d spent the past half month immersed in his cultivation, so he’d almost forgotten about this uncle of his!

“Come in,” said Su Yi.

Ye Yunlan pushed open the door and entered. The thin, graying middle-aged man walked with a hurried gate, his brow racked with concern.

As soon as he saw Su Yi, he said, “Members of the Ye Family have arrived, and I suspect they know about you. We have to leave as soon as possible!”

“So, they’re finally here…” As Su Yu muttered, he couldn’t help but look a bit intrigued. “How many of them are there? And how strong are they?”

“I don’t know.” Ye Yunlan shook his head.

“Then how do you know the Ye Family is here?”

“Look at this.” Ye Yunlan raised his left hand and showed Su Yi the green leaf birthmark on his wrist. It was shining with a faint layer of misty light, and its vein-like markings were flickering.

“Whenever a member of the Kunwu Mountain Ye Family appears within one hundred miles of me, I can sense them through my birthmark,” Ye Yunlan said. “That is to say, they’re already not far away!”

His brow was knit with concern.

Su Yi thought for a moment, then said directly, “If they come after me, and if comes to blows, will you stop me from killing them?”

Ye Yunlan was stunned, but a moment later, he said with staunch assurance, “You needn’t worry. Even if it costs me my life, I’ll ensure your safety.”

“Answer my question directly,” said Su Yi.

The corners of Ye Yunlan’s lips twitched, and he shook his head. “I won’t.”

Su Yi nodded. “That makes this simple. Let’s just wait for them to throw their lives away.”

Ye Yunlan was just about to say something when Su Yi raised his hand and silenced him. “I know what you want to say, so don’t try and persuade me any further.”

He already understood how Ye Yunlan did things. He was wholeheartedly fixated on ensuring his safety, no matter the cost.

But the crux of the matter was that although Su Yi appreciated his thought, he… really didn’t need his uncle’s protection!

Ye Yunlan’s expression shifted erratically. Some time passed before he gnashed his teeth and said, “Fine. I’ll join you, then, and we can test whoever arrives together!”

Su Yi had no further objections. He didn’t reject Ye Yunlan; he could tell that his uncle was truly concerned for his well-being.

That was enough.

“Su Yi, you… really don’t plan to come back to the family with me?” Ye Yunlan couldn’t help but ask.

“I’ll go,” said Su Yi. “But not right now. We can discuss when exactly I’ll go back later.”

His answer was a bit perfunctory, but Ye Yunlan’s spirits soared nonetheless. He smiled, looking gratified. “Excellent. Excellent! No matter when you decide to come to the Mysterious Blue Realm, I’ll do everything in my power to seize the Ancestral Origin Divine Canon for you!”

“Why don’t you inherit it yourself?” asked Su Yi.

Yu Yunlan’s expression was suddenly complex. “Back then, throughout the entire Ye Family, only your mother and I were qualified to inherit it, but in the end, only one of us could obtain it. I gave up on the opportunity; I planned to leave that grand stroke of fortune for your mother. Who’d have thought….”

He sighed, his expression full of grief. He couldn’t say any more.

Su Yi was moved.

This was an opportunity to prove one’s Dao and become an Emperor. Even in the Nine Provinces of the Wilds, who wouldn’t have been tempted?

But Ye Yunlan had given up on it, leaving it to his little sister, Ye Yufei!

From this, it was clear how much he’d doted on his little sister.

Su Yi thought for a moment, then said, “Since my mother is no longer here, why… Why can’t you inherit it in her stead?”

Ye Yunlan shook his head and said somberly, “Back then, had I returned to the clan just a bit faster, those old fogeys wouldn’t have schemed against her, and none of those misfortunes would have befallen her.”

He looked at Su Yi. “You are your mother’s only son. Since she’s left this world, it’s only right that this fortune goes to you instead.”

Su Yi didn’t say anything. He knew that refusing would do him no good.

As they conversed, they suddenly heard footsteps from beyond the courtyard.

Afterward, someone forced the door open, and an elder walked into the courtyard leading a man and woman.

“Just as I thought. You’re here too, Yunlan,” laughed the elder leading the group.

He was dressed in ornate purple robes, and his hair was silver and neatly combed. His skin was as lustrous as an infant’s, making him seem youthful despite his age. He had a graceful, majestic bearing.

“So, you’re here, Seventh Elder.” Ye Yunlan’s pupils constricted slightly. He transmitted to Su Yi, “This is Ye Changchun, the seventh elder of the Kunwu Mountain Ye Family. He’s in the mid-stage Spiritual Revolution Realm, and he’s condensed a first-rate Grand Dao Spirit Wheel. He’s incredibly strong. However, you needn’t worry. I have means of handling him!”

Ye Yunlan sounded solemn, but not at all panicked. 

“Look, Seventh Elder. That’s most likely Su Yi. He really does look a bit like Little Sister Yufei,” said the ornately-dressed woman accompanying Ye Changchun. She pointed at Su Yi and sighed.

The man beside her was tall, thin, and dressed in black. His arms were crossed, and he held a sheathed longsword to his chest. He raised his jaw slightly, his expression cold and proud.

His knifelike gaze swept across Su Yi, and he said, “It seems our intelligence was accurate. Su Yi really is Ye Yufei’s son.”

It was bad enough that they’d kicked the door in, but after arriving in Azurecloud Court, they commented on Su Yi as if there were no one else around.

Wen Xinzhao’s painted eyebrows furrowed in displeasure. Their attitude was unquestionably overbearing, and she found it detestable.

“You two had best rein it in a little! This isn’t the Mysterious Blue Realm!” Ye Yunlan snorted coldly.

As he spoke, he transmitted a message to Su Yi introducing the two of them. 

The ornately-dressed woman was Ye Xueting, while the man in black was called Ye Fenghe. Both were in the late-stage Spiritual Incarnation Realm, and both were deacons of the Kunwu Mountain Ye Family.

They were of the same generation as Ye Yunlan and Ye Yufei.

However, Ye Yunlan and Ye Yufei were members of the main branch, while these two were both from side branches.

Seventh Elder Ye Changchun was from a side branch too.

Even after learning all this, Su Yi remained unmoving in his chair, his expression as calm as ever. “All I want to know is this: are they enemies?”

Ye Yunlan had a conflicted look in his eyes, but he nodded.