SWNOVELXO Chapter 177:
Chapter 177:
Nine Heavens City was in chaos.
Li Fanyin was overwhelmed with frustration.
Successors and disciples from the ten great forces were being killed one after another within the city’s borders.
And there was no clear evidence that the demonic cult remnants were responsible.
Not only was Nine Heavens City affected, but many sects traveling to Yuanwu Mountain had also been attacked.
Some smaller sects had been completely wiped out, from their sect leaders down to the lowest disciples—no one was spared.
Fear spread throughout the entire region.
For the past two days, Xiao Yang had remained at the Inn, avoiding unnecessary trouble.
Although news of the turmoil constantly reached his ears, he remained indifferent.
This wasn’t the first time he had witnessed such events.
Every time the Jiazi Tournament approached, the previously peaceful Northern Territory would be thrown into turmoil.
The demonic cult would use the opportunity to stir up chaos, attempting to destabilize the region.
They could only rise to power if the Northern Territory was in disarray.
Furthermore, opportunists like Chu Guiyuan and Ye Feiyang were also lurking in the shadows, hoping to take advantage of the chaos.
The Jiazi Tournament, held once every sixty years, was simply too important.
Just as Xiao Yang was patiently waiting for the tournament, Liu Qingyun and Ling Xian’er came looking for him.
As long as a martial cultivator met the requirements, they could participate in the Jiazi Tournament.
However, the tournament’s location was in the Sacred Land of Immortals and Martial Arts—a place where demons, monsters, and ghosts could not enter.
Especially demonic cultivators.
The Sacred Land was forbidden territory for them.
This was why, despite being the son of the demonic cult’s leader, Qin Fei had never practiced demonic arts since childhood.
If he had, not only would he have been barred from the Jiazi Tournament, but even joining Azure Sun Sword Sect would have been impossible.
Though Qingyun Sect now had only Liu Qingyun and Ling Xian’er left, they still qualified to participate.
Of course, most people couldn’t even step onto the Ascension Platform.
“Son-in-law, why don’t you leave Azure Sun Sword Sect and join my Qingyun Sect instead?”
Inside the guest room, Liu Qingyun spoke seriously to Xiao Yang.
He had somehow learned that Xiao Yang was at odds with his master and also had conflicts with Qin Fei, the innate Dao-body prodigy with prematurely white hair.
So, he was trying to persuade Xiao Yang to join Qingyun Sect.
Xiao Yang recalled how, in his past life, this old man had single-handedly faced a million demonic warriors, dying a heroic death. He was a true warrior—so Xiao Yang didn’t take offense.
Ling Xian’er had also suffered a tragic fate in his past life.
Qin Fei had eventually converted to a supreme demonic cultivation method, absorbing the life force of countless human cultivators.
Many fell victim to him, drained of their cultivation before dying horrible deaths.
Ling Xian’er had been among them.
Before she died, Qin Fei had forcibly taken her, then absorbed every last drop of her energy, leaving her to perish in agony.
Their past life had ended in tragedy, but in this life, the outcome was still undecided.
Most importantly, Qin Fei had already been rendered a eunuch by Xiao Yang.
From now on, he could never harm another woman.
This alone had indirectly saved countless talented women in the Northern Territory.
“Leave Azure Sun Sword Sect?”
Xiao Yang chuckled but didn’t say anything further.
From the moment he was reborn, he had been thinking about how to leave Azure Sun Sword Sect.
But leaving wasn’t so simple.
Azure Sun Sword Sect had spent countless resources nurturing him—Jiang Qitian would never let him go so easily.
That was why he had made a bet with Jiang Qitian.
He didn’t trust that hypocrite to honor his word otherwise.
The Jiazi Tournament was his best opportunity to leave Azure Sun Sword Sect.
Failure was not an option.
“What’s so great about Azure Sun Sword Sect? Even the sect master is a sanctimonious hypocrite!”
Liu Qingyun blurted out.
But as soon as he said it, he realized his mistake and quickly covered his mouth.
Xiao Yang was surprised—how did he know that Jiang Qitian was a hypocrite?
Ling Xian’er shot Liu Qingyun a glare.
“Haha, I was just joking!”
Liu Qingyun laughed awkwardly.
“Ahh, it’s been a long time since I’ve had such good wine.”
He quickly changed the subject.
“The best wine in Nine Heavens City—Carefree Wine! And the best women—those from Moonview Tower!”
Liu Qingyun raised his cup and gulped down the wine.
“Ah, refreshing!”
He looked intoxicated with delight.
“Son-in-law, I’m short on spirit stones lately. Lend me some, will you?”
Liu Qingyun reached out his hand, rubbing his thumb and forefinger together.
Xiao Yang looked at him and couldn’t help but sigh inwardly.
The dignified sect master of Qingyun Sect had been reduced to this.
Five hundred years ago, Qingyun Sect had been one of the ten great sects of the Northern Territory.
Back then, it was an immensely powerful sect, ruling over a vast region spanning thousands of miles.
Who could have imagined that the once-glorious sect, filled with countless experts and disciples, would now have only two members left?
Xiao Yang flipped his hand, and a storage pouch appeared in his palm.
He tossed it onto the table.
Liu Qingyun quickly picked up the pouch and peeked inside—his eyes instantly lit up.
The pouch was filled with hundreds of spirit stones, and not a single one was of lower or middle grade.
They were all high-grade, with even a few supreme-grade ones mixed in.
“Thanks! I’ll pay you back as soon as I get more spirit stones.”
Liu Qingyun grinned from ear to ear, thrilled at Xiao Yang’s generosity.
For him, this was a fortune.
He gleefully stashed away the pouch, then poured himself another drink and downed it in one go.
Xiao Yang, however, didn’t take his words seriously.
As if Liu Qingyun would ever pay him back.
“How do you know Jiang Qitian is a hypocrite?”
Xiao Yang suddenly asked, looking at Liu Qingyun.
“Puah!”
Liu Qingyun spat out his wine.
“T-This… I never said Jiang Qitian was a hypocrite!”
He quickly denied it.
He eyed Xiao Yang suspiciously.
Did Xiao Yang just casually call his master by name?
That seemed rather disrespectful…
Xiao Yang observed Liu Qingyun’s reaction and immediately understood—this old fox definitely knew something.
However, it was obvious that Liu Qingyun wasn’t going to say anything.
Xiao Yang didn’t mind.
After all, he already knew that Jiang Qitian was a hypocrite.
…
At dawn, the sun rose over the horizon.
Today marked the beginning of the Northern Territory’s Jiazi Tournament.
“Dang!”
A deep, resonant bell rang out, interrupting Xiao Yang’s meditation as he sat cross-legged on his mat.
“This is…”
Xiao Yang abruptly stood up.
“It has begun…”
Liu Qingyun and Ling Xian’er rushed in from outside.
The bell’s chime reverberated throughout the entire Nine Heavens City.
Countless cultivators, upon hearing the sound, froze in place as if immobilized by an invisible force.
Their expressions were filled with shock.
“It has begun…”
Inside a pavilion within the City Lord’s Mansion, Jiang Qitian, who had been meditating on a prayer mat, slowly opened his eyes.
The bell’s majestic chime had not only spread across Nine Heavens City but had also echoed throughout the entire Northern Territory.
It came from the peak of Yuanwu Mountain.
As the bell rang, it was as if the entire world had momentarily fallen into silence.
Ancient figures from countless sects and cultivation families across the Northern Territory were startled awake by the sound.
“At last… it has begun.”
In the forbidden grounds behind Azure Sun Sword Sect, the sword guardian, who had been meditating beneath the Sword Platform, stood up.
Sixty years had passed—one full cycle of the Jiazi calendar.
The Jiazi Tournament was finally here.
The moment that would determine the fate of countless sects, families, and factions had arrived.
Excitement and anticipation surged through the warriors of every power in the Northern Territory.
At the same time, the Martial Saints of Floating Sword Sect and Guiyuan Martial Sect emerged from their secluded cultivation the moment the bell rang.
The Daozi of the Supreme Dao Sect descended from the mountains.
At that very moment, the leaders of the Northern Territory’s ten great sects, clans, and factions began their purification rituals, bathing and donning ceremonial robes in preparation to ascend Yuanwu Mountain.
Liu Qingyun retrieved the Qingyun Sect Master’s robe, which he hadn’t worn in years.
It was a dazzling, resplendent long robe with a deep ocean-blue base, embroidered with intricate and mysterious cloud and water patterns.
Spiritual energy swirled around it, as though it contained boundless power.
“This robe is quite impressive.”
Xiao Yang was surprised—Liu Qingyun actually had something this valuable.
“If you wear that outside, aren’t you afraid someone will rob you?”
Xiao Yang laughed.
This robe was clearly extraordinary.
Given Liu Qingyun’s level of cultivation, if he walked around in it, he’d probably end up stripped down to his undergarments before long.
“Heh heh, if you want it, I can give it to you.”
Liu Qingyun chuckled.
“Do you really have such a generous heart?”
Xiao Yang was skeptical.
“Haha, as long as you agree to become the Sect Master of Qingyun Sect, this robe is yours.”
Liu Qingyun then pulled out a large seal from his sleeve.
“And I’ll even throw in the Qingyun Sect’s official seal.”
With that, he placed the sect’s grand seal in front of Xiao Yang.
“…”
Xiao Yang was speechless.
He wanted me to become Qingyun Sect’s Sect Master?