Naked Sword Art

[ Black Paradise sect - Matriarch's Hall ]

As the morning briefing was coming to an end, Supreme Elder Quan suddenly stepped forward.

"Matriarch, permission to speak."

"Mn, granted," Matriarch Shi replied.

With the attention now on her, Supreme Elder Quan began to speak about her encounter with the Cannibal Abnormal Beast on the 7th floor of the sect's Ancestral Training Ground.

The Elders in the room began to murmur after Supreme Elder Quan finished telling them what happened, leaving out the detail about her being saved by Xiao Fang's supposed master.

...

"A 9th tiered Abnormal Cannibal beast, huh. How rare. It's battle power must be incredible," Disciplinary Elder Yao said in surprise.

"We can't allow such a creature to exist. It must be eliminated," another Elder said.

As Shi Lan was thinking about what to do, Supreme Elder Song suddenly stepped forward.

"Matriarch, if you would allow it, I'd like to be the one to eliminate this threat," Supreme Elder Song said.

"Elder Song, you only just returned to the sect yesterday. You must be tired, so you should rest," Matriarch said.

"I've rested enough. I'll be honest, in my long travels I acquired a new weapon, so I'm itching to try it out. Please grant my selfish request, and allow me to fight this cannibal beast."

Matriarch Shi paused before saying,

"Very well, but I want Elder Quan to accompany you."

"Yes, Matriarch," Supreme Elders Quan and Song replied with their hands cupped to her.

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After the morning briefing came to an end, Matriarch Shi finally slouched back in her chair as she thought about all the things that were discussion in that room. However, shortly after she did, Li Lian eventually walked in.

"Ah, Lian'er, you've arrived. Have you been training well?" The Matriarch asked.

"I have," Li Lian replied.

"Show me," the Matriarch said before gesturing for her to make her a cup of tea.

Understanding the assignment, Li Lian grabbed what she needed then started to make the tea while heating it up with her [ Heavenly Fire ] spirit attribute qi.

As they waited for it to be ready, Li Lian looked up at the Matriarch and could tell something was wrong, so she asked,

"How did the morning briefing go?"

Matriarch Shi was a bit surprised to hear that question from Li Lian, so she asked,

"Are you interested in the sect's politics now?"

"I suppose I am a bit curious about the sect's affairs," Li Lian said after thinking about it for a second.

"Very well, but there are a few things you must know first."

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For a long time now, the Black Paradise sect held the title as being the strongest sect in the QiGon province, but considering how poorly they were doing in annual Royal Court Tournaments against the other top sects in the country, especially in the last few decades, many of the minor sects here were starting to discussion whether the Black Paradise sect was still fit to represent their province.

Furthermore, it was becoming known that the Divine Sword sect and Chaos sect were under a ceasefire for reasons unknown. As good as that might seem, the last time they had a ceasefire, they simply directed their tyranny somewhere else. Considering the fact that the QiGon province was bordering both of these two infamous provinces, it was understandable for the minor sects here to be unnerved.

Tension with the minor sects were rising at an alarming rate, and signs of panic could be seen everywhere they looked. To make matters worse, the Elected Head was also breathing down the Matriarch's neck to fix the problem soon, but for political reasons, the Elected Head had chosen to not get involved in the matter herself.

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Matriarch Shi sighed after explaining the current situation to Li Lian, but as bad as the situation was, Li Lian was more interested in the fact that the Chaos sect and Divine Sword sect were currently at a ceasefire. 

'Did something happen while we were away? I wonder if Xiao Fang knows about this,' Li Lian thought.

As she thought about the Divine Sword sect, Li Lian eventually noticed Matriarch Shi taking out a fancy looking scroll.

"What's that?" Li Lian asked curiously. 

"Not too long ago, a report was sent to the Royal Court requesting that we be replaced as the head representing sect for the province. What I hold in my hand is a confirmation letter from the Royal Court stating that they acknowledge the request and will be sending someone over here oversee and arrange a tournament for us."

"Is this really happening? How many days do we have left till it begins?"

"I assume the Royal Court representative is already on his way. There will be a tournament for the minor sects in the province first, then the winner amongst them will be facing us a few days later. We should have about 2 weeks to prepare," Matriarch Shi estimated.

"That's so soon," Li Lian said, but just as Li Lian spoke, the tea she was heating up with her Heavenly Fire Qi began to boil.

Noticing what was happening, Li Lian stopped, then sighed in relief that she didn't overdo it. 

Seeing that, Matriarch Qi smiled.

"My little disciple has been training so well recently, perhaps its time I reward you."

Li Lian didn't think what she did was something worthy of praise, but she wasn't foolish enough to decline a gift from the Matriarch herself.

"Master is too kind," Li Lian said with cupped hands a slight bow.

After she raised her head back up, Li Lian noticed the Matriarch extending an arm out towards her with a pair of earrings in her hand.

"This..."

Li Lian knew the matriarch loved dressing her up, but the earring she held in her hands looked no different than the emerald bright green earrings she always wore.

"I know what you're thinking. Put them on," Matriarch Shi said.

Switching the earrings she had on for the one the Matriarch was giving her, she immediately noticed something strange the moment she touched it.

"It feels... empty," Li Lian said as she held it.

To anyone that might've heard Li Lian's description of the earrings, they would've been confused by it, but Matriarch Shi knew exactly what she meant.

"The stone in those earrings is an special artifact capable of storing Qi. Focus now, and try to flow your Qi into it," the Matriarch briefly explained.

Li Lian sat down legs crossed, then did as she said. As soon as she did, her hair and robes fluttered as her earring glowed and swayed. Seeing a stream of fiery Qi swirled around and get absorbed by the earrings, the Matriarch smiled in satisfaction. 

Despite being an artifact, there was no telling the effects Li Lian's spirit attribute Qi would have on it. From the looks of it, it seemed like Li Lian's Qi was being absorbed into it smoothly.

With her Qi nearly depleted, Li Lian's chest began to heave as if she had just finish running a marathon, but just when it seemed like she had no more Qi to release, her spirit attribute Qi began to glow more fiery, and what followed was the sound of a dragon's roar that shook even the Matriarch's core.

[ 1st Stage Dragon Perception ]

Wearing her fiery Qi like an extra layer of robes, Li Lian's chest no longer heaved, instead she seemed as calm as ever. At the same time, the Matriarch noticed the colour of the earrings change to match her fiery Qi, and with it Li Lian's battlepower rose by another realm.

'Incredible,' Matriarch Shi thought with furrowed brows.

Even though she knew what Li Lian was capable of, it still amazed her to see it. However, it didn't last long.

Once her Qi was almost all used up, Li Lian finally stopped. Once she did, she felt as if she didn't have any strength left.

"It's still not full," Li Lian said in shock.

"The earrings can store as much Qi as the average Divine Realm cultivator can store naturally in their dantians. It'll take a several more sessions till it'll be full," the Matriarch explained.

"This little thing can store that much Qi?" Li Lian said in surprise as she began to touch it curiously.

Absorbing some of it back into her dantian, Li Lian made another surprised look on her face when she realized how easy it was.

'Amazing. Let's see how my unfaithful husband will be able to bully me now,' Li Lian thought with a mischievous smirk as she envisioned herself throwing countless [ Exploding Stars ] at him the next time they fight.

"I take it that you like my gift," Matriarch Shi said.

Hearing that, Li Lian happily cupped her hands again then joyfully bowed and raised her head at the Matriarch with a smile on her face.

"Thank you for this gift. I love it!" Li Lian said.

"I knew you would," Matriarch Shi smiled back. "Now, get back to training. I'll need to rely on your strength for when the tournament begins."

"You want me to fight in the tournament? But I'm not nearly as strong as any of the girls in the Core Court," Li Lian said in shock.

"The tournament will be for the youngest generation, meaning only those under the age of 25 would be able to enter."

Li Lian always liked a good fight, but as the Matriarch's only direct disciple, there was an unbearable amount of pressure on her back to succeed.

"Erm, I've only recently started learning the [ Illusory Body ] method. I don't want to disappoint you, but is there anyone else you can rely on for this tournament?" Li Lian asked.

"The Black Paradise sect is the most prestigious sect in the province, of course we have some of the best youngsters in the country wanting to join our sect," Matriarch Shi replied before tossing Li Lian a scroll with a list of names on it. 

Seeing Xun Wei's name on the list didn't surprise her, but when she saw 'Long Wang' at the bottom of it, her heart nearly stopped.

'Xiao Fang...' Li Lian thought with a bit of a worried look on her face.