VAP - Chapter 96
Chapter 96: Flawless Cold Bone, The Peerless Sword Venerable (20)
As the one who had been schemed against, Yun Yijiu didn’t feel much about it.
She nodded to show she understood, then suddenly stood up and said flatly, “Situ Wen has fallen, but Situ Que is still here. I’m going to find him.”
Yue Du was taken aback. “Didn’t we say before…”
Didn’t we say we needed to be cautious and not act rashly?
After all these days of careful investigation, they finally had a result. They couldn’t afford to let it all go to waste.
“At this point, I don’t believe the Situ family has anything that can restrain me,” Yun Yijiu said matter-of-factly. “I’m probably not a qualified elder. If they were dissatisfied with me, they would have used their methods long ago to make me serve the sect wholeheartedly.”
But Situ Que hadn’t. Not only that, but he had also provided her with the best food and drink, treating her with a humble and respectful attitude.
For a Tribulation Transcendence Stage Venerable to bow and scrape before another—how much self-control must one have to endure that while holding a weapon that could threaten the other party?
Yue Du had considered this possibility, but out of an abundance of caution, she had ultimately chosen to be careful.
Even now, she still held this view. “We can’t rule out the possibility that Situ Que himself is just good at enduring. What if he thinks it’s no big deal to suffer a little humiliation in daily life, as long as he keeps his trump card hidden?”
The fact that he hadn’t shown the slightest hint of his true nature for thousands of years was a testament to how much he could conceal his intentions.
Listening to Yue Du’s frowning analysis, Yun Yijiu was no longer in a hurry to leave.
She sat down again, poured Yue Du a cup of spirit tea, then poured one for herself. After taking a leisurely sip, she said, “You’ve forgotten. Their methods should have come from Situ Chu.”
Yue Du was confused. “So?”
“Suppressing ascension, linking one’s body to the grand formation—these were all techniques Situ Chu used on herself. How could she have considered such insidious methods for others?”
“The Autumn Water Sword Venerable herself isn’t off my suspect list yet. Who knows if it was a conspiracy between the ancestor and her descendant,” Yue Du muttered.
Despite saying that, and though she was still reluctant to let Yun Yijiu take the lead, Yue Du’s wariness towards the Situ family had indeed lessened.
But she didn’t relent, merely lifting her tea and taking a small sip.
—It wasn’t as if they were short on time. If they could be safe, they should be as safe as possible.
Yun Yijiu fell silent for a moment, then said seriously, “Don’t you want to teach the Situs a lesson?”
“Of course, I’ve wanted to for a long time,” Yue Du replied without hesitation.
“Then that’s perfect.”
Yun Yijiu tapped her Wushuang Sword with her knuckles. The blade let out a clear, ringing sound, as if declaring that now was the time to punish the mastermind.
Yue Du didn’t fall for it. “Desire and reality are two different things.”
Yun Yijiu: “Demonic cultivation follows the heart. Suppressing your inner desires will affect your cultivation.”
Not beating up Situ Que would affect her cultivation? What kind of twisted logic was that? But coming from Yun Yijiu, it carried an undeniable sense of gravity, as if it were a natural law.
Although, in reality, Yue Du wasn’t practicing a demonic cultivation technique…
Yue Du shook her head. “Let me think about it some more.”
Yun Yijiu: “Mm.”
Yue Du thought for a while on her own.
Perhaps Ah Jiu was right. The world was never perfect, nor could it be. Not every decision she had ever made had been a sure thing.
So why was she being so exceptionally cautious and careful when it came to Yun Yijiu, to the point of appearing timid?
Yue Du looked up and saw Yun Yijiu still sitting there, holding her teacup. She wasn’t drinking, but quietly watching her with those deep, dark eyes.
At that sight, Yue Du’s heart suddenly softened.
She hoped to be as stable as possible, but her host was someone who fundamentally believed, “As long as I’m happy, nothing else matters.” Even the relatively simple and aloof Yun Yijiu actually thought this way deep down.
If Yue Du hadn’t stopped her, Yun Yijiu would have charged over to their door long ago. It was only because of Yue Du that she had the patience to wait in Wushuang Hall for news.
Yue Du wondered if this was really what was best for Yun Yijiu.
She thought she was doing what was best for Ah Jiu, but was it really the best course of action? If she couldn’t be certain which path had more benefits than drawbacks, why not choose the one that would make her host happy?
Once Yue Du started thinking from this angle, the scales in her heart had already tipped toward Yun Yijiu’s suggestion.
Finally, she sighed and couldn’t help but smile. “Ah Jiu has a point. I was getting obsessed. But, let’s wait a little longer. Let me make some preparations, okay?”
Yun Yijiu agreed. “Okay.”
With that matter temporarily settled, Yue Du relaxed and began to think about what preparations would be sufficient to handle any unexpected situations.
Suddenly, another thought occurred to her.
It was something she had been curious about for a long time but had never asked. Now was a good time. “Ah Jiu, what kind of sword art do you practice?”
Yun Yijiu: “Ah, the Duzun Sword Art.”
The answer was somewhat unexpected. “I thought it would be called the Wushuang Sword Art or something.”
Yun Yijiu said calmly, “The elder who taught me back then also thought it should be called the Wushuang Art. He said the Duzun Art sounded like the pursuit of a demonic cultivator.”
Yue Du: “Then your title, Wushuang…”
“Venerable Duzun sounds a bit awkward,” Yun Yijiu said.
Yue Du chuckled. A certain idea in her mind became clearer, and she continued with great interest, “Don’t tell me this sword’s original name is the Duzun Sword?”
She pointed to the longsword at Yun Yijiu’s waist.
“Not this one. It’s always been called Wushuang,” Yun Yijiu paused. “I do have a Duzun, but I don’t use it often, so I keep it on my head.”
Yun Yijiu had two swords. One was for daily use, named Wushuang. The other was her life-bound sword, brought out only for life-or-death battles, named Duzun, which matched her cultivation technique.
—It was the sword hairpin in her hair bun.
No wonder that little sword felt even more spiritually alive than the Wushuang Sword.
Yue Du pressed her temples, feeling a little helpless. “I’ve realized I know far too little about your cultivation. Tell me about it, it doesn’t have to be too detailed.”
Yun Yijiu gave her a not-too-detailed explanation.
The cultivation technique of the Wushuang Sword Venerable was self-created. Yue Du knew this, but what she didn’t know was that the Duzun Sword Art, in the beginning, couldn’t really be considered orthodox immortal cultivation.
Yun Yijiu’s method of cultivation was already very special. Other cultivators had to rely on meditation and other methods to circulate their spiritual energy and absorb power, but she was different.
All Yun Yijiu had to do was sleep. While she slept, her spiritual energy was automatically absorbed, making her cultivation progress much faster than others.
This sleep-cultivation method was practically tailor-made for lazy people!
At the time, the elder was shocked by her cultivation speed and had tried to study it, but ultimately gave up in regret.
If it were just that, it wouldn’t have been classified as unorthodox.
But the elder discovered that the mental cultivation method Yun Yijiu was using was neither the one he had taught her nor one recorded in the sect. It was something this quiet little girl had created herself.
Creating one’s own cultivation technique was a good thing—if the underlying principle of the “Duzun Sword Art” didn’t so closely resemble a demonic cultivation technique.
Immortal cultivators followed the Heavenly Dao, while demonic cultivators followed their own hearts. The elder saw that Yun Yijiu neither followed the laws of the Heavenly Dao nor indulged her nature as she pleased, which made things difficult.
If he had to say, he felt it leaned more towards the demonic path.
But how could he let such a rare genius be snatched away by the demonic path?
In any case, this self-created technique was marvelous to behold, cool and proper. Why not just classify it as an immortal cultivation method?
The elder changed the name of the technique from “Duzun” (Solely Honored) to “Wushuang” (Peerless). It didn’t seem like a big deal, but the essence of the name had changed.
The technique was called Wushuang, the sword forged for it had to be called Wushuang, and her title was also Wushuang… Wushuang, Wushuang, Wushuang. Such an ethereal adjective, so fitting for an immortal sword cultivator.
That elder had truly gone to great lengths to firmly bind Yun Yijiu to the side of immortal cultivation.
Yue Du was amazed.
“So, should I call you Venerable Duzun?”
Yun Yijiu was expressionless. “You like that title? If you like it, I don’t mind.”
Yue Du waved her hands. “No, no.”
Yue Du’s curiosity was satisfied. She had felt that something was off about Yun Yijiu being so carefree. It turned out her original mindset was closer to that of a demonic cultivator. She was revered as an Immortal Venerable purely because the immortal path couldn’t do without her.
“Have you ever thought about becoming a demonic cultivator?”
Yun Yijiu said, “My mental cultivation method is neither demonic nor immortal. It’s impossible to become a demonic cultivator, and becoming an immortal is also not possible.”
She could choose her faction as she pleased.
She asked, “Do you think it’s better to be a demonic cultivator?”
The subtext was: If you say yes, I’ll switch sides.
“Not really. You seem more like an immortal. It would feel strange to call you a demonic cultivator.”
“Then let’s forget it,” Yun Yijiu said contentedly.
Today, the Wushuang Sword Venerable was still an “immortal cultivator.”
When Yue Du made preparations, she was determined to do the best she could within her control before she could feel at ease.
She also had to consider the aftermath. If they exposed Situ Que now and revealed what he and his son had done to the world, what would happen to the Lingtian Sword Sect afterward?
Thinking about these things wasn’t because Yue Du liked to meddle in other people’s business.
She selfishly wanted to stay here for the full ten years, but if Yun Yijiu ascended, her mission would be considered complete, and she would be immediately forced to leave the Qianhong small world.
Rather than hastily ascending and saying goodbye, it would be better to drag it out until the last moment, provided that ascension was guaranteed. In that case, she couldn’t completely wash her hands of the Lingtian Sword Sect’s affairs.
“Suddenly, I feel it might be better to wait a while longer before making a move.”
One day, Yun Yijiu said thoughtfully.
Yue Du, who was busy making plans, asked, “Why?”
Yun Yijiu showed her a calendar. A date three months from now was circled in red ink, making it particularly conspicuous.
Yue Du: “What’s this day…”
Oh.
Right, she remembered.
Wasn’t this the auspicious day for their Dao Companion ceremony that they had divined earlier?
Yun Yijiu said slowly, “I’ve thought about it. If we kill the Sect Master now, there will probably be a lot of trouble afterward. It would be a shame if it affected the Dao Companion ceremony.”
Yue Du had been so busy with investigations and arrangements lately that she had almost forgotten about the ceremony. Recalling it now, she was filled with anticipation.
That was true. Preparations for a formal Dao Companion ceremony took time; it shouldn’t be rushed.
On the other hand, the ceremony could also be used to their advantage. After the ceremony, while Situ Que was still present and off his guard, would be the perfect time to strike.
Yue Du shared this idea with her soon-to-be Dao Companion.
Yun Yijiu: “…”
The aura around her immediately sank.
Yue Du was quite optimistic. “How feasible do you think this idea is?”
Yun Yijiu said flatly, “I think it’s a bad idea.”
This was their Dao Companion ceremony.
Why should such a highlight moment be linked to dealing with petty villains!
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