Chapter 82: Wait, This Is for Real??

"Disciple Qingran humbly beseeches the heavens for mercy and compassion, to shield and protect, to dispel all calamities, and to ensure my master's safety and well-being."

The next morning, Li Qingran followed her usual routine of burning incense, bathing, and bowing three times to the sky, praying for her master's blessings.

Afterward, she rode the crane gifted by Senior Sister Zhao Le to the Sword Pavilion's main square.

She had always been punctual, preferring to arrive early rather than late. She thought she was among the early arrivals, but when she reached the square, she was stunned. The entire square was already packed with people. On rooftops, atop ancient pines, and even perched on the tips of bamboo stalks, Sword Pavilion disciples stood, sat, lay down, or meditated. The better the vantage point, the more crowded it was.

Clang—!

Suddenly, the sound of a sword echoed, and a beam of sword light shot into the sky from the front of the crowd.

Then, the sound of a scuffle followed.

"Get out of here! This spot is mine!"

"You say it's yours, so it's yours?! I say it's mine!"

"I left my sword here to claim the spot!"

"I don't care!"

The intense clash of swords reverberated through the sky.

None of the surrounding Sword Pavilion disciples made any move to intervene. Instead, they watched with interest, even discussing who would win.

"Junior Sister, you'll have to come even earlier next time."

A figure landed on a nearby bamboo tip—it was Xu An, who had gifted her the spirit wine the day before.

"Senior Brother Xu." Li Qingran quickly bowed in greeting.

"No need to be so formal." Xu An held a wine gourd, his eyes slightly tipsy, and chuckled. "The morning lecture is very important. It's where the elders gather to address cultivation issues, and the head disciples share their cultivation and combat experiences. After the morning lecture, disciples from each peak are taken back by their respective elders to practice their specific sword techniques."

"I see…" Li Qingran nodded, still a bit bewildered.

The Sword Pavilion's teaching model was completely different from the Qingyun Sect's, and it seemed quite efficient.

"So, you have to come early to secure a good spot. Sometimes, the head disciples spar with each other, and the closer you are to the front, the more details you can see, which is very beneficial for cultivation and sword combat." Xu An seemed to grow tipsier as he spoke, swaying on the bamboo tip. Yet, no matter how much he swayed, his feet remained firmly planted.

"But, Senior Brother, you seem to have arrived quite late too."

"Me?" Xu An waved his hand dismissively. "No one dares to take my spot. The front row is reserved for the top three disciples of each peak. If someone wants to take it, they'll have to defeat us first."

The sword fight in front seemed to have reached a conclusion.

A Sword Pavilion disciple cursed as he climbed onto a nearby rooftop, shoving another disciple who had claimed the spot earlier and taking his place.

Dong— Dong— Dong—!

Ethereal bell chimes echoed from the distant mountains, ringing nine times. The entire square instantly fell silent.

"The morning lecture is about to begin." Xu An's expression turned serious, and his tipsiness vanished. "Junior Sister, I'm heading to the front. See you later~"

With that, Li Qingran blinked, and Xu An was gone from her sight, leaving only the swaying bamboo behind.

···

Li Qingran was completely captivated throughout the morning lecture.

The Sword Pavilion elders didn't just share their experiences and call it a day.

Due to the vast gap in cultivation levels, much of the knowledge was like an incomprehensible scripture to disciples who hadn't reached those levels.

So, the elders broke down the knowledge into digestible pieces, making it easy for disciples of different levels to understand.

At the same time, they allowed disciples to glimpse higher-level knowledge without it affecting their cultivation.

This made Li Qingran think of her time at the Qingyun Sect.

When Qingxu Daoist taught her the Red Cloud Art, he simply recited the口诀 (oral formula) and left it at that.

It had taken her a lot of effort just to translate the口诀 into something she could understand.

After the morning lecture, all the disciples left with their respective elders.

Li Qingran didn't rush to leave.

She circled the small square for a while.

Finally, she found Sword Pavilion Master Su Qinian snoring on an ancient pine tree.

"Pavilion Master, this junior has something to report!"

Li Qingran stood under the pine tree and bowed, but there was no response from the tree.

She glanced up and saw that this at least Nascent Soul-level sword cultivator was still sleeping without a care in the world!

"Pavilion Master?"

"Junior Sister, you won't wake Master like that." Yue Qianchi appeared out of nowhere, her face full of mischief as she slung an arm around Li Qingran's shoulders.

"Master can sense killing intent from a hundred miles away outside the Sword Pavilion, but inside, even if a disciple gets within ten centimeters of him, he'll keep sleeping." Yue Qianchi rummaged through her storage pouch and pulled out a bronze disc and a mallet.

She raised an eyebrow at Li Qingran. "Today, Senior Sister will teach you how to wake up the sleeping Pavilion Master."

Li Qingran's face paled. "Senior Sister, this… this isn't appropriate, is it?"

She already had a bad feeling about what Yue Qianchi was about to do. It was outright disrespectful!

In the Qingyun Sect, such an act would get you expelled!

"It's fine." Yue Qianchi leaped onto the tree, placed the disc above Su Qinian's head, and swung the mallet in a wide arc.

BANG—!!!

Li Qingran closed her eyes in fright.

When the echoes faded and she opened her eyes again, Su Qinian was sitting cross-legged, his face dark and his muscles twitching.

Meanwhile, the culprit, Yue Qianchi, had vanished.

Oh no!

Li Qingran quickly bowed and explained, "Pavilion Master, it wasn't me who did that just now. It was…"

She gritted her teeth and ultimately didn't rat out her senior sister.

Let the Pavilion Master figure it out himself.

She closed her eyes and resigned herself, saying, "This junior got dust in her eyes and didn't see anything."

"Hey! You think I don't know it was that brat Yue Qianchi who did it?" Su Qinian gnashed his teeth, his fists clenched inside his sleeves. "That brat is getting more and more mischievous. Later, I'll make her clean up the sect guardian beast's dung!"

"Ah? That's not so bad." Li Qingran breathed a sigh of relief.

Cleaning up the sect guardian beast's dung wasn't much of a punishment.

She had done similar tasks before—it was just a bit smelly.

However, Su Qinian's expression changed, and a sinister smile crept onto his face.

"Hehehe! So it was that brat after all? Hehehe! Good! She did well! Hehehe…"

Li Qingran was dumbfounded.

She hadn't expected the Pavilion Master to trick her like that.

And now, she had accidentally sold out her senior sister?

Li Qingran lowered her head, clasped her hands together, and looked both apologetic and regretful.

[Senior Sister, I'm sorry QAQ, the Pavilion Master is just too cunning!]

"No need to pray for that brat. She's done for." Su Qinian descended from the pine tree and stood in front of Li Qingran, straightening his robe. He asked, puzzled, "But you, what did you need me for?"

Li Qingran steadied her mind and bowed deeply.

"Pavilion Master, my master, the Supreme Elder surnamed Chen, is currently battling a great demon. He said he's been afflicted with a strange poison and may not have much time left. This junior thought that since my master is a Supreme Elder of the Sword Pavilion, this matter should be brought to your attention."

Master? Sword Pavilion Supreme Elder? Afflicted with a strange poison?

Huh?

Su Qinian's lips twitched.

Wait, is this for real?!

···

···