Volume One: A Youthful Meeting in Humble Days Chapter Ninety-One: A Promise to Green Mountain

After Shen Xun was taken away, the Shen household was naturally in low spirits, and Li Yu and the others could not remain there for long. He understood that at a time like this, a family needed its solitude more than anything; there were matters outsiders could not intrude upon, and the sorrow and grief in their hearts could only be borne and digested by themselves.

When Mu Feng carried Shen Xun to the carriage on his back, Li Yu looked at Shen Xun's peaceful face and could not help feeling sorry for him. If, when he awoke, he learned that his parents had abandoned him, how heartbroken would he be?

And yet, could one say that Shen Xun's parents were in the wrong?

Given Shen Xun's temperament, he would never have left his younger sister behind if he had known his parents were leaving. Thus, by the rules of Ten-Thousand-Sky Town, so long as he did not wish to go, and with the Daoist's words as well, no one could have forced him out of the town's domain.

But if he were unconscious, and his kin fervently desired to take him away, then passing through the town's barrier would be effortless; otherwise, he would be halted before that gate of Ten-Thousand-Sky Town.

There was no doubt that this was a safeguard left by the immortals and sages of old for the town's people.

They must have anticipated that such a situation might one day arise, and so laid down a restriction bound to the will of the heart.

After Li Yu and Xu Kaijiang left the Shen residence, Li Yu took Xu Kaijiang to a wonton shop in town for a bowl of wontons.

The owner of the shop had failed, in the aptitude test two days earlier, to discover any cultivation talent that might have taken him away from the town. For the past two days, he had been dejected, his head bowed and his eyes downcast.

Seen by others, such a sight naturally invited mockery; they laughed at him for having a heart higher than the heavens and a fate thinner than paper.

But in Li Yu's eyes, it bore a different flavor altogether.

People often believe only what lies before their eyes, forgetting what kind of falsehood may lurk behind so-called truth.

Seeing Li Yu arrive, the wonton-shop owner hurriedly gathered himself, forced a smile onto his face, and greeted him. After Li Yu and Xu Kaijiang sat down and ordered two bowls of wontons, nothing more was said.

The owner was grateful that Li Yu treated him as he always had, without the slightest trace of mockery or pity, and felt a measure of thankfulness.

The wontons were brought soon after. Li Yu and Xu Kaijiang each had a bowl. The wontons were delicate and dainty, with broth made from dried shrimp, a little seaweed, and a scattering of bright green scallions.

When Xu Kaijiang lifted one to his mouth and ate it, the wonton's savory sweetness burst across his tongue in a delicious bloom, a flavor that concerned taste, but even more, the long-lost peace it brought him.

Li Yu also ate slowly. His mind was occupied with other matters, and he paid little attention to the bowl before him. Only when the owner came over and wanted to chat did Li Yu rouse himself from his thoughts.

The owner brought over a small dish of side pickles and sat down of his own accord opposite Li Yu. "Are the wontons good today?"

Li Yu looked up with a smile. "The flavor is all right."

Hearing this, the owner let out a sigh. "That's good, then."

Li Yu understood why the owner had asked; perhaps he had thought Li Yu was in a bad mood and feared that what he made would not taste good either.

"Don't lose heart. Some things, before the very end, cannot really be judged as good or bad." Unable to bear it, Li Yu still offered him a word of comfort.

After they finished their simple meal, Xu Kaijiang asked where they were going next. Li Yu said, "To the posthouse residence."

Xu Kaijiang said nothing more and simply followed Li Yu there.

Li Yu had some suspicions of his own. Since the two scholars of the Confucian sect had sent Shen Xun away so quickly, the appearance of the Heavenly Gate in Ten-Thousand-Sky Town was likely only a few days away. But exactly which day it would be, or when those outsiders planned to begin the sacrifice, he did not know.

The only possible breakthrough point was Lu Ming.

After they arrived at the posthouse and explained their purpose to the guard at the gate, it was not long before Lu Ming came out to receive them.

What surprised Li Yu a little was that when Lu Ming brought them into the guest room, there was already someone else inside.

Elder Xie Tong looked at Li Yu and smiled kindly. "You've finally come."

After Li Yu and the others were seated, he asked tentatively and in puzzlement, "You knew I would come?"

"Once Lu Ming told you the true purpose behind the talent-gathering assembly, I guessed that one day you would come looking for him. I simply did not expect that you would come so late."

Li Yu sat upright and said, "I've come here to seek guidance from you on one matter."

Lu Ming glanced at Xie Tong as if he had something to say. Xie Tong ignored him and said directly, "Ask whatever you wish."

Seeing this, Li Yu did not hesitate further. "When do they plan to hold the sacrifice?"

"If nothing unforeseen happens, it should be at sunset the day after tomorrow."

Xie Tong's answer was equally concise, with no intention of hiding anything. After hearing it, Li Yu thought it over carefully, then nodded. "Thank you for telling me. I've asked what I came to ask. Then what would you like to know?"

Clearly, the other three present had not expected Li Yu to say such a thing, especially Xie Tong. His brows lifted as he studied Li Yu seriously for the first time. He thought to himself that this young man's maturity of mind was even more seasoned and composed than Lu Ming's. Add to that his talent, and if he could truly join Azure Mountain, he might prove even more suited than Lu Ming to shoulder its burden.

"What I want to know is: what exactly does your master intend to do?"

This question had long been a source of doubt for everyone present that day, and Xie Tong was naturally curious as well. But he had asked the wrong person.

Li Yu did not even think for long before saying, "To be honest, I cannot truly be certain what Master intends to do either. What I can say is that Master does not wish for the Heavenly Gate to open."

Indeed, in Li Yu's past conversations with his master, the Daoist had never spoken to him of anything he intended to do in Ten-Thousand-Sky Town. This was the only statement Li Yu could make with certainty.

Xie Tong was not entirely surprised to hear this, but after having his suspicions confirmed by Li Yu, he was still somewhat shaken.

To all cultivators, the Heavenly Gate signified something sacred, the only known shortcut to attaining the Dao and ascending, or perhaps the only passage.

As for why the Daoist did not wish for it to open, Xie Tong did not know. But then again, did the Daoist truly possess the power to turn the tide and make his unwillingness come true?

Xie Tong asked again, "Do you think your master can do it?"

The question was, in truth, quite pointed. If he could do it, then it meant he would act upon it. It was a single question with two answers. Li Yu was not foolish; he understood the implication, but how should he answer?

In Li Yu's eyes, his master could accomplish anything he set his mind to. That was born of his blind trust and dependence on the Daoist. Yet rationally, he also felt that if the master acted alone, achieving his aim would likely not be easy.

Suddenly, Li Yu felt this was an excellent moment, and he answered, "He's my master, so of course I trust him. As long as he wants to do something, nothing is too difficult for him. But whether he can do it or not can also be judged from the rest of you."

The three of them were puzzled. Xie Tong, however, seemed to grasp a little of his meaning. He asked, "What do you mean by that?"

Li Yu continued, "So long as your great sword sect of Azure Mountain does not intervene, or leaves room when it does, I think my master can succeed."

Xu Kaijiang had not expected to hear so much information that day. Every day, his understanding of Li Yu was being refreshed: from his broad-mindedness at the beginning, to his kindness later, and now to the depth of his calculations and the measure of his schemes, all of it spoke to the many faces of this person.

Likewise, Lu Ming felt the same. He thought the Li Yu before him had changed, grown even harder to see through than he had been seven years ago. If the Li Yu of the past had been a green mountain, the present Li Yu now concealed himself in the ethereal morning mist, impossible to see in full.

Xie Tong adapted very quickly. He withdrew the smile from his face, and an immense presence seemed to emanate from him as he asked, "And why would you think I would agree to what you say?"

Xie Tong's aura was no ordinary presence of a thirteenth-realm cultivator. He had immersed himself in that realm for many years, and his understanding and insight into it had long since reached the pinnacle of mastery. It could be said that with an opportunity, he could step across the threshold from the thirteenth realm into the fourteenth.

Facing that pressure directly, Li Yu said without fear, "Because I believe in the pride of sword cultivators. You would never place your ascent in the hands of outside forces. I believe the sect that Brother Lu Ming belongs to is certainly not one that would ignore the lives of others. More than that, I believe in my master. What he wants to do will never be driven by whim."

The two of them stood in confrontation for the time it took to brew a pot of tea, neither willing to yield.

Several times, Lu Ming wanted to break the deadlock and tell Xie Tong not to make things too difficult for Li Yu, and Xu Kaijiang was also worried sick on the side. But the two of them were each more stubborn than the last, and neither would back down.

In the end, it was Xie Tong who first withdrew his aura. Lu Ming and Xu Kaijiang hurried to comfort their respective companions. Xu Kaijiang asked worriedly, "Are you all right?"

Li Yu shook his head. "I'm fine. Don't worry."

"Elder, how could you act against a child? If he has said anything wrong, I will apologize to you on his behalf. Why make things difficult for him?" Lu Ming said, somewhat complainingly, as he handed Xie Tong a cup of tea.

After taking the tea, Xie Tong sipped it slowly and gave him a sidelong glance. "I did nothing at all, and you're already so protective of him. You are the sword immortal of Azure Mountain, not his senior brother."

Lu Ming said nothing, merely looking at Li Yu, who smiled at him and signaled that he was fine.

Then Xie Tong continued, "Our Azure Mountain will only do what we ought to do in this matter. As for the rest, we will not interfere further."

Li Yu frowned slightly after hearing this, not understanding what "what we ought to do" meant. He then asked, "May I ask, Elder, what counts as what ought to be done?"

The elder answered very solemnly, "The opening of the Heavenly Gate is something the people desire. We cannot go against the tide of events; that is what ought to be done. But after what ought to be done has been done, as for how things will turn out, how they will be completed, that is no longer within our grasp."

Only then did Li Yu understand. He stood and bowed to the elder. "Thank you."

Li Yu and Xu Kaijiang took their leave. On the way back, Xu Kaijiang asked, "Did the elder agree or not?"

Li Yu said, "What the elder means is that they will strike only once. If that one attempt fails, then even Azure Mountain will be powerless."

After Lu Ming escorted Li Yu back, Xie Tong said to him, "In the future, keep more in contact with that young man. One day, he may well stand at the summit of this world. To be on good terms with him will also be a form of protection for our Azure Mountain."

Lu Ming felt a sudden clarity in his heart. Hearing this, he was also very pleased. If even the elder said so, then he must have seen in Li Yu something Lu Ming himself had failed to see.