SOL Chapter 1

Cui Wei Sword Pavilion (Part 1)

Cui Wei Sword Pavilion (Part 1)

Desolate Wilderness, a solitary moon hangs high.

The dim moonlightSprinkle, flowing over the tall figure of the young man.

He wears the most ordinary black Sword Pavilion disciple uniform, a simple long sword at his waist. His messy black hair is tied back in a disheveled knot, with nothing particularly outstanding about him. He is truly someone who would disappear in a crowd.

Only a simple copper bell hangs from his ear, the red tassel decoration dangling on his right shoulder, extremely eye-catching.

Like a solitary wild goose, he darts through the forest, the copper bell jingling softly.

A hundred yards behind him, the Sword Pavilion members are closing in, encircling him.

“I said long ago, when there are no heroes, worthless people become famous. Li Shan is just a greenhorn. The title of Number One of Sword Pavilion is only due to his master’s prestige, it doesn’t count!”

“His behavior of running and hiding, like a homeless dog, is truly a disgrace to his master’s reputation, utterly laughable!”

“Li Shan, how long will you cower and flee? You might as well surrender quickly and return to Cui Wei Sword Pavilion with us to receive your punishment!”

Their voices, filled with Qi settled in the Dantian, steady as a bell, show that the elders sent to capture Li Shan are all unfathomable masters of inner strength within the sect.

This young man is none other than Li Shan, known in the Immortal Sect as the “Number One of Sword Pavilion.”

Li Shan is a disciple of the Cui Wei Sword Pavilion’s Master, wielding the “Withered Wood Meeting Spring” Sword that slays both gods and demons. Although very young, he appears to be the successor of Cui Wei Sword Pavilion.

In addition, his personality is dull and unremarkable, lacking in social skills, leading to much envy and dissatisfaction among the Sword Pavilion members.

But because his swordsmanship is unmatched, and the Master frequently protects him, no one dares to object.

However, not long ago, this delicate balance was broken—

Li Shan’s elder brother, Li Huai Su, entered Demonic Cultivation, murdered the Master, and then defected!

The Immortal Sect is not truly a place of non-contention. Now that the Master is dead, the Sword Pavilion is a group of dragons without a head, with undercurrents surging within, each with their own plans, and Li Shan, as the murderer’s younger brother, is naturally the first to be affected.

Suspected of complicity, Li Shan was imprisoned in the Sword Pavilion Water Dungeon to await trial, but was secretly released by his senior brother, which led to this moonlight chase and interception tonight.

Li Shan, who had been silent all along, finally spoke.

He is not good with words, his voice slightly hoarse, “Please, elders, return. This junior does not wish to injure anyone. After I kill my brother to avenge the late Master, I will return to Cui Wei Sword Pavilion to receive my punishment!”

Li Shan’s words are grand and righteous, as if mocking the cultivators present, implying that none of them are capable of fighting him.

One person sneered upon hearing this, “Why bother pretending now? You are so eager to escape, probably because you already know about our Sword Pavilion’s plan to encircle and suppress Li Huai Su and clean up the sect, and are rushing to inform him!”

Li Shan said solemnly, “That’s exactly what I want to say! Since he can kill the late Master, who in the Sword Pavilion can be his opponent? I fear this battle is destined to be a tragic loss, and I really cannot bear to see the bloodshed. I hope the elders will discuss it again.”

Upon hearing this, the cultivators were even more certain that the two Lis were accomplices, “What a kind-hearted man who can’t bear to see the bloodshed! It’s a pity that the elders responsible for cleaning up the sect have already set off. Tonight is the death of your brother Li Huai Su!”

They continued, “Now that the Demon World is declining, even the most powerful Great Brahma Demon Clan is hiding in the Demon World, afraid to come out. Li Huai Su destroyed his Dao Heart and entered Demonic Cultivation with a mortal body. Can he be stronger than a Heavenly Demon?”

Seeing that the others had a deep misunderstanding of him, Li Shan knew that it was useless to reason with them, so he simply quickened his pace in silence.

He only hoped that he could kill his brother before he committed more sins.

Seeing Li Shan increase his speed, the cultivators assumed that he wanted to escape by taking advantage of the complex terrain, so they all chased after him. An elder took the lead in catching up with Li Shan, drawing his sword and forming a formation, forcibly slowing Li Shan down. The remaining elders took the opportunity to step forward and cooperate with that person to set up the Vast Wave Sword Formation, wanting to trap Li Shan to death within it.

As the killing move approached, Li Shan frowned slightly and finally drew his sword.

Only then did the cultivators see clearly that the divine weapon “Withered Wood Meeting Spring,” rumored to terrify demons, was actually a blunt, unsharpened weapon! A heavy sword has no edge, but it has a sense of great skill without artifice.

Li Shan moved extremely fast. Taking advantage of that fleeting flash of sword light, the elders finally saw Li Shan’s face clearly.

It was a lovable face like a hibiscus beauty, but her eyebrows did not hold a smile, and her eyes did not contain spring, only a stern and cold aura remained.

Within three moves, the elder with the highest cultivation among them, who was also the formation eye of this Vast Wave Sword Formation, was actually forced back by Li Shan’s sword energy.

Without the formation eye, the sword formation naturally collapsed.

The cultivators present were also shocked by his overwhelming sword energy.

The elder took two steps back and vomited a mouthful of blood.

The cultivators were both shocked and ashamed. They angrily pointed their swords at Li Shan, but none dared to step forward, “Li Shan, your elder brother has made a big mistake. Do you also want to follow his example?”

Li Shan stood with his sword, saying each word distinctly, “I did not injure the elders fatally. If you want to fight, then fight, but you are not my opponents, so don’t waste time.”

As soon as he finished speaking, no one retorted.

Li Shan’s swift moves just now had brutally illustrated the insurmountable gap between them. To mention fighting again was tantamount to humiliating themselves!

Seeing this, Li Shan was about to turn around and leave, but a voice came from behind him.

“You are going your own way, but you should also think about your senior brother!”

The injured elder patted several acupoints on his body, suppressing the urge to vomit blood and holding the line, sneering at Li Shan.

Li Shan’s light eyes turned to the elder’s face, seemingly moved, and asked, “How is Senior Brother Ci Hua now?”

The person who secretly released Li Shan was named Zhou Ci Hua, Li Shan’s senior brother from the same sect, and the late Master’s personal disciple.

Seeing that he cared about Zhou Ci Hua, the elder immediately seized the key point, “Your senior brother has been implicated by you and has been punished by the new Master to receive punishment Between the Surging Waves. If you insist on obstructing tonight’s encirclement and suppression, and inform your brother, his end will be imaginable!”

Li Shan had not thought about the consequences of Zhou Ci Hua releasing him. He was just eager to save people, so he left in a hurry.

He took a deep breath, two scales constantly swinging in his heart.

Hesitating, Li Shan suddenly frowned slightly, his gaze looking towards the dark north, “Do you smell blood?”

The cultivators were a little confused by his sudden words. There was only a faint smell of grass after the rain in the air. As for the smell of blood, they did not notice it at all.

“Stop pretending to be mysterious and playing tricks here!”

Li Shan took a deep breath, feeling that his breath was trembling.

He was born with senses more acute than others. He clearly smelled an extremely strong smell of blood coming from a very distant place in the northwest. The smell of iron mixed with the rain after the rain. Just by smelling it, he could imagine the tragic scene.

Now that things have come to this, I am afraid it is too late to stop it.

Li Shan was silent for a few seconds before saying, “Everything is my fault, don’t implicate others.”

Seeing this, the elder smiled triumphantly, “If you want to take responsibility, shouldn’t you show some gesture!”

Li Shan was silent for a few seconds, and unexpectedly raised his hand and threw the Withered Wood Meeting Spring directly at his feet.

For a sword cultivator, the most important thing is the saying “The sword is always with you, the sword is where the person is.” Li Shan’s actions are tantamount to surrendering. He said, “I will go back with you.”

Seeing his submissive posture, the cultivators dared to step forward.

But they had seen Li Shan’s sword energy, and they were afraid that he would take advantage of their unpreparedness to injure people, so they summoned the Immortal Binding Lock to bind Li Shan’s hands. This Immortal Binding Lock is a magic treasure of the Immortal Sect. As long as it is tied on, even if your cultivation is sky-high, you will be no different from a mortal, unable to display any power.

Li Shan’s light-colored eyes, like a non-substance, swept over the ropes on his hands. There was neither shame of being captured nor anger of being trapped on his face, only a strong sense of worry and panic between his eyebrows.

Set off by Li Shan’s posture, it made the Sword Pavilion members seem like villains who used tricks to force people into submission.

One of them was high-spirited and immediately walked forward unhappily, pinching his chin fiercely and said, “Li Shan, do you think your swordsmanship is so great that you are so powerful! You are the Master’s personal disciple, so naturally you don’t know how many natural resources and treasures are sent to you like flowing water. It is natural for you to have high cultivation. Anyone in your position can do better than you! Now that things have come to this, what are you still pretending to be noble? Don’t you secretly scold us for being despicable? I tell you, any means can be used to deal with people like you who collude with the Demon Clan!”

Several elders brought Li Shan back and found that the atmosphere in the entire Sword Pavilion was heavy.

Because they were sent out to capture Li Shan, they did not know the situation of the encirclement and suppression of Li Huai Su.

Only after asking did they know that the hundred or so powerful cultivators from the Sword Pavilion who went to encircle and kill Li Huai Su had not survived!

The most taboo of cultivators is greed, ignorance, and anger, greed is immoderate desire, ignorance is blind ignorance, anger is anger that burns the heart, only by calming the mind, introspection, and self-cultivation can one attain its way and act according to it, the Demonic cultivator did the opposite

Li Huai Su, who had just entered Demonic Cultivation, annihilated more than a hundred former senior cultivators overnight, which was rare even among the Heavenly Demon Clan. Now, he is probably greatly accomplished in Demonic Cultivation. If he is allowed to do as he pleases, he will definitely become a major disaster in the cultivation world in the future!

“Didn’t you say that Li Huai Su’s cultivation is not as good as Li Shan’s? How is it that only a few people were sent to capture Li Shan, but none of these hundred people survived!”

“This Li Huai Su must have learned Demonic Cultivation’s evil methods after entering Demonic Cultivation. The heretical religion is indeed full of tricks and cruel methods!”

“You don’t know the tragic scene on the scene, it’s really like a blood-stained hell, and even a complete human form can’t be pieced together. Only minced meat and mutilated limbs are left, and blood gathers into a pool – definitely not human power!”

“Father, mother, rest in peace, your child will definitely avenge you!”

The people who captured Li Shan were both surprised and frightened upon hearing this.

What was surprising was that, as Li Shan had said, none of these hundred or so former powerful experts were Li Huai Su’s opponents.

What was frightening was that if they had not been sent to capture Li Shan, then they would probably have become a pile of minced meat under Li Huai Su’s hands.

Li Shan arrived at the Hall of Deliberations of the Sword Pavilion, and heard these words of sorrow or anger along the way, his heart falling to the bottom.

Before he could say anything, a young man rushed up with fierce eyes and raised his hand to strike Li Shan in the face.

Now that Li Shan’s spiritual energy was sealed, although the young man’s cultivation was not good, this blow was enough to use 70% of his power. Li Shan was caught off guard and his face was slapped to the side. He was stunned for a long time.

The cultivators were caught off guard and quickly went to stop the young man, but they heard the young man roar at Li Shan in grief and anger, “Give me back my father and mother!”

Li Shan’s heart trembled. Although he did not kill the young man’s parents, he still felt extremely guilty.

With his hands bound, he could only kneel down slowly and prostrate himself to the young man, “I’m sorry, you can kill or beat me, just come at me.”

It was clearly a posture of offering his neck to be slaughtered, but because of his beautiful face, he showed some pity.

“I have to say a fair word, these two Lis are brothers, but they are also independent of each other. It is really inappropriate to directly anger Li Shan because of the evil deeds committed by Li Huai Su!”

“Indeed, although Li Huai Su entered Demonic Cultivation, Li Shan, as his brother, is inseparable from the blame. But Li Shan’s cultivation is profound, why not give him a chance and let him kill Li Huai Su, which can also be regarded as atonement for his merits.”

Someone’s voice came from outside the main hall, “The elders are really thinking too beautifully. Brotherly blood is thicker than water, how can he have the heart to kill his brother?”

The person who came was Lin Que, who had just taken over the position of Master of the Cui Wei Sword Pavilion.

Master Lin showed a worried look and slowly entered the hall, “I have heard that after Li Huai Su killed the Master, he also went to Li Shan’s residence – but Li Shan not only did not avenge his Master, but even did not injure Li Huai Su and let him go for nothing.”

Everyone looked at each other in surprise, “There is such a thing!”

Li Shan lowered his eyes and admitted frankly, “It was indeed my negligence that I let him leave that day. My brother is now crazy. If he is not killed immediately, I am afraid that he will cause trouble in the future. If you don’t doubt it, I will come back to apologize to you after I kill my brother.”

His words were earnest and his posture was extremely low, causing the cultivators to waver.

But Master Lin heard the fire in his heart burning straight up, and he couldn’t wait to shut Li Shan up immediately.

But he still had that gentlemanly face, quite considerate of Li Shan, “The relationship between the two brothers is very close, which is also human nature, so it’s no wonder Li Shan. But if Li Shan is really released, then I don’t know if he is going to avenge his Master or imitate Hong Fu running in the night.”

But this remark once again emphasized the close relationship between the two Lis, so people had to consider it –

If Li Shan really joins Li Huai Su and becomes an enemy of the Immortal Sect, then the situation would probably be even worse!

Although Lin Que has a deep qualification and prestige in the Sword Pavilion, he does not sit securely in the position of Master.

The Immortal Sect has always respected the strong, and seniority is the lowest consideration. And if we talk about the strong, it is definitely not his turn – Li Shan should be the first among them.

Excluding Li Shan, another personal disciple of the late Master, Li Shan’s senior brother Zhou Ci Hua, is also more suitable than him.

If it hadn’t been for Li Shan’s brother committing a bloody crime and Zhou Ci Hua secretly releasing him, I’m afraid this position of Master would not have been his turn.

Especially after the failure of the encirclement and suppression of Li Huai Su, the cultivators also doubted Lin Que’s command ability.

If Li Shan is really allowed to kill Li Huai Su, then it would be a great achievement, which would definitely restore Li Shan’s reputation. At that time, let alone let him commit suicide to apologize, how could they be willing to punish him!

It would be even more impossible to kill Li Shan directly. Li Shan has not really committed any crime, and people are good at beautifying memories. When talking about it in the future, Li Shan offering his neck to be slaughtered would become a hero, and he would become a villain who forced him to death.

Even if Lin Que was as disgusted as if he had eaten a fly, he could only temporarily protect Li Shan.

Li Shan noticed that the atmosphere in the hall had already turned to Master Lin, and knew that he was clumsy and could not persuade everyone, so he just lowered his eyes and said, “If this is the case, let’s leave it to you to deal with.”

Looking at Li Shan’s gentle and obedient appearance, Lin Que couldn’t help but feel a slight movement in his heart. He lowered his eyes and said solemnly, “Now you are indeed a trouble. Killing you is unbearable for everyone, and letting you go is also something everyone does not dare to do.”

These words spoke the minds of the Sword Pavilion elders. The current Li Shan is no longer the talented young man he used to be, but a hot potato. Naturally, they echoed, “That’s right, that’s right.”

Lin Que said slowly, “Then let’s imprison Li Shan in Among the Bamboo Forest first and see what Li Huai Su does in the future before making a decision. If we really find evidence that he is colluding with that demon, it won’t be too late to kill him.”

Among the Bamboo Forest is where the Sword Pavilion Master lives. Seeing that Lin Que is willing to take over this trouble, the cultivators no longer have any objection.

Some people glanced at Li Su and said threateningly, “The Master is really kind to protect this scourge! You will reflect on your mistakes in Among the Bamboo Forest in the future. If there is any change, we will never spare you.”

Everyone said one thing and another, and they had already decided how Li Su would be in the future. But Li Su just knelt on the ground quietly and silently. He could not see the expression on his face, but only heard him gently respond, “Yes.”

Seeing this, the elder who brought Li Shan back became even more proud. The proud son who was spoiled and pampered by the late Master in his hands has now been reduced to a prisoner, but he did not resist at all and was as obedient as a dog.

He raised his foot and stepped on Li Shan’s shoulder, pressing his back even lower, “You have to take care of yourself-”