Refining the Mountains and Rivers

Chapter 1710 – Sealed Object

Qin Yu turned and looked at Xu Jing calmly, “Although it ran away, I can’t be confident enough to say that it will not call its comrades. So our best option now is to leave here.”

He paused for a while and then said, “I know that you are feeling very conflicted, but if I was involved with the calamity in the Sword Prison, I would not have appeared here.”

Xu Jing thought about it. Through gritted teeth, he said, “My disciples from the South Sea Sword Sect are not far away from here. I want to lead them away too.”

Qin Yu continued staring at Xu Jing. Xu Jing explained, “As an elder of the South Sea Sword Sect and its guardian for the Sword Prison, I will not run away by myself.”

“Let’s move and talk.” Qin Yu’s body flashed and he zipped through the darkness.

Xu Jing was hesitant for a while. Then, he moved as well but he kept a distance between them.

“Elder Xu, you can tell me about the Sword Prison. I do not know much about it.” Without turning behind, Qin Yu calmly instructed.

Xu Jing finally understood what Qin Yu meant by ‘let’s move and talk’. After taking a few deep breaths, he said, “The Sword Prison has lost control.” Whether Qin Yu was telling the truth or not, there was no need to hide this from him if things had progressed to this stage.

More importantly, Xu Jing had personally witnessed that Qin Yu’s appearance had scared away the terrifying legendary grade Sword Demon.

But Qin Yu’s explanation just now was also convincing – if Qin Yu was truly related to the events here, he would not have appeared where Xu Jing was and exposed himself directly.

At this point, Xu Jing made a decision. He would ‘rely’ on the Opening Heavens Sword Sect and leave the Sword Prison. As for the relationship between the South Sea Sword Sect and the Frost Cold Sword Sect, that was not his concern now.

With this thought, Xu Jing’s attitude changed. He took in a deep breath and continued, “The loss of control of the Sword Prison means that its internals have spiraled into a destructive state for reasons unknown. The Sword Prison’s entrance would be sealed and the Sword Demons born in the Sword Prison would become much stronger.”

He looked at Qin Yu and continued, “However, the most terrifying thing is not this. When the Sword Prison loses control, the core level of it would open and terrifying legendary grade Sword Demons would appear. This is the greatest kept secret of Swallow Mountain and only the Sect Masters and members of the Main Sword Masters would know this.”

So this was the origins of the legendary grade Sword Demons…the core level of the Sword Prison. No wonder it seemed so extraordinary.

Qin Yu’s mind spun quickly, “What is in the core level of the Sword Prison? Since Elder Xu is willing to tell me, you should know that the two of us can only survive this if we are honest with each other.”

Xu Jing shook his head and answered quickly, “No one knows the secret of the Sword Prison. Back when the Sword Prison lost control for the first time, the appearance of legendary grade Sword Demons resulted in large casualties of swordsmen in Swallow Mountain. Some have tried to investigate the core level of the Sword Prison, but all swordsmen who entered it died and no one managed to make it out alive.”

“Elder Xu, you seem to be hiding something.”

Xu Jing was at a loss for words.

Then, he sighed deeply. Through gritted teeth, he said, “That’s right, I did hear the Sect Master mention some rumors about Swallow Mountain. But they are groundless.”

Qin Yu demanded, “I want to know about them.”

Xu Jing nodded, “It is rumored that there is a great, powerful seal in the depths of Swallow Mountain that seals a legendary divine weapon. It is because of it that Swallow Mountain is particularly good for swordsmen. After much progress and effort, it became the sacred sword grounds that it is today.

“The Sword Prison is where the energy of the seal leaks out and Sword Demons are formed when the aura of the sealed divine weapon is condensed. But this is just a rumor and among the hundred over families and sects of Swallow Mountain, no one has ever found anything related to the seal.”

Qin Yu’s eyes brightened and he slowly said, “Perhaps the core level of the Sword Prison is that seal.”

Xu Jing’s mouth fell open but he nodded, “There is that possibility. However, I don’t think it is the time to investigate this. Sect Master Qin, you should consider how we are going to lead the disciples to safety.”

He took in a deep breath and continued in a low voice, “Please forget our past grievances and help the South Sea Sword Sect. As long as you are willing to help, the South Sea Sword Sect will do our best to return the favor in the future and I promise that we will not be your enemy.”

In this dangerous situation, anyone could face a dire situation of life and death at any moment.

Xu Jing could not be bothered to be nitpicky and consider his wins and losses. He directly came forward with utmost sincerity, with his only desire being for Qin Yu to nod his head. He had already experienced personally the power of a legendary grade Sword Demon. If Qin Yu turned him down…the South Sea Sword Sect and everyone else would be in deep trouble!

The silence felt like it lasted for a year.

Right as Xu Jing’s lips quavered and he was about to add something, Qin Yu suddenly said, “Elder Xu is too serious. There hasn’t been any conflict between the South Sea Sword Sect and the Opening Heavens Sword Sect; we are not enemies.”

Whew –

He heaved a long sigh of relief and there was a look of gratitude in his eyes. He nodded heavily, “Sect Master Qin is right, my apologies.”

Qin Yu pointed ahead, “We are here.”

In front of them, the disciples of the South Sea Sword Sect were engaged in a tough battle.

The strength of the top grade Sword Demons was a level below the legendary grade Sword Demon, but these disciples could not handle them.

This was especially so since the members of the team were already injured.

Even though they had experience battling a top grade Sword Demon before and they were spurred forward by their adrenaline under critical circumstances, there were still casualties. The South Sea Sword Sect was down to the remaining seven disciples, and three people would stay here for eternity.

Xu Jing’s eyes grew red and he roared as he attacked. The Vast Sea Sword Skill was released and it killed a few top grade Sword Demons on the spot.

“Elder!”

There was a look of joy on the disciples’ faces but they immediately darkened again.

Qin Yu said, “Elder Xu, we should leave immediately.”

It was at this moment that the disciples saw Qin Yu standing not far away and their eyes widened. Evidently, they were puzzled at why the Sect Master of the Opening Heavens Sword Sect was here now.

Weren’t they supposed to be drawing their swords at each other with bloodshot eyes previously? What was going on?

Xu Jing explained, “It is all because of Sect Master Qin’s help that I managed to rush here and save you all; don’t be rude!

“Hurry up and clean up your comrades’ bodies – we are leaving here!”

Very soon, they backed off from the deep level of the Sword Prison. Qin Yu was at the back of the group and even though he did not turn back, he could feel the cold pair of eyes staring at him from the darkness.

Their journey was smooth, so smooth that the disciples of the South Sea Sword Sect suspected that they had teleported elsewhere. If not for the dark and oppressive aura around them, they would wonder if they were still in the deep level of the Sword Prison.

It was too silent!

It was so silent that they could only hear the sounds of them quickly moving through the air.

Xu Jing heaved a sigh of relief. By this point, he could confirm that the Opening Heavens Sword Sect had a special technique to scare off the Sword Demons in the Sword Prison. However, why had he not heard of this before? If they had such a divine technique, why would the Opening Heavens Sword Sect have been destroyed so easily in the past?

He could not understand.

But this was not important.

What was important was for the South Sea Sword Sect to tightly hug onto the leg of the Opening Heavens Sword Sect, as this was their only way out.

They saw Zhang Xiashan and the rest.

“Sect Masters!”

The underdog team stepped forward to greet them and there was an instant look of relaxation on their faces.

Although it had been silent just now, they felt like the darkness was scary.

It felt like a terrifying Sword Demon could pop up at any moment and tear them into pieces.

Qin Yu’s appearance had caused their fear to disappear in an instant.

Qin Yu’s chest relaxed and he nodded at the underdog team, “This is Elder Xu Jing of the South Sea Sword Sect.”

A look of surprise flickered across the underdog team’s face and they were stunned. Then they quickly bowed respectfully.

Thankfully, Xu Jing was thick-skinned enough to ignore their gesture.

He nodded at the underdog team to express his acknowledgement, “This time, it was all thanks to Sect Master Qin that the South Sea Sword Sect was able to escape our predicament.”

Qin Yu knew what Xu Jing was doing. Repeating what happened was a respectful gesture to Qin Yu and it was also to celebrate his achievements in front of the disciples, because Xu Jing was worried that Qin Yu would change his mind. He wanted to latch onto this opportunity to remind Qin Yu not to go against his word.

The look that the underdog team gave Qin Yu after hearing Xu Jing’s words truly made him feel good.

Qin Yu coughed lightly, “Elder Xu, let’s discuss serious matters.”

Xu Jing cupped his hands, “The South Sea Sword Sect will listen to Sect Master Qin’s instructions.”

This elder appeared prim and proper on the surface. He would not be easy to deal with.

However, he was truly splendid.

Qin Yu waved his hand, “I told you that I am not too familiar with the situation in the Sword Prison. If Elder Xu has any suggestions, please share them.”

Qin Yu’s expression did not look like he was shirking his duties. Xu Jing thought about it and then said, “The Sword Prison has lost control in the past. In the end, the swordsmen who survived were those who managed to retreat to the shallow level of the Sword Prison in time. They were able to establish a connection with the outside world and they worked together to force through the seal of the Sword Prison’s entrance.”

He looked at Qin Yu, “So our best bet is to gather the rest of the swordsmen from the various sword sects in the Sword Prison now and attempt to save as many lives as possible. Because the seal on the Sword Prison is hard to break through and forcing it open from the inside is much more effective than attacks from the outside. The more swordsmen survive, the faster we can break through the seal.”

He spoke in a serious manner.

Strictly speaking, aside from the South Sea Sword Sect the other top ten sword sects had an unspeakable relationship with the Opening Heavens Sword Sect. The death of a whale benefits all in the ocean. This saying could be used on the Opening Heavens Sword Sect.

The calamity in the past that destroyed the Opening Heavens Sword Sect had stuffed the tummies of many swordsmen.

Think about the Circling Heavens Sword Sect whose ancestral hall was destroyed by rogue cultivators’ combined attacks. It could be deduced that the top ten sword sects did not play a very glorious role back then.

As the returned Sect Master of the Opening Heavens Sword Sect, Qin Yu’s attitude towards the top ten sword sects was crucial.

Qin Yu could guess what Xu Jing was thinking, but he did not explain anything and directly shook his head, “We do not have to go through that much trouble.”

Anxious, Xu Jing quickly added, “Sect Master Qin, this is not the time to let emotions affect your decisions, we should…”

Qin Yu raised his hand to cut him off. He stared at Xu Jing and said lightly, “Aside from us, there are not many who are still alive in the deep level of the Sword Prison now.”

Xu Jing’s body jerked.

Qin Yu continued, “This involves life and death, and I will not let past grudges affect my life ahead.”

Xu Jing sighed, “I trust Sect Master Qin’s judgment.” His heart was heavy and he could not help letting his emotions show.

As one of the top ten sword sects in Swallow Mountain, the South Sea Sword Sect was considered a top tier team. Xu Jing could reach the same conclusion that the time at which the various great sword sects entered the deep level would not have varied too much.

After a few days, there were so many dead and injured. The consequences of the Sword Prison losing control this time was more severe than he thought.

How many legendary grade Sword Demons came out from the core level of the Sword Prison this time?

More importantly, most swordsmen of the great sword sects were dead. Would they be able to break out of the Sword Prison like in the past? Xu Jing was not too confident of this and he could not help staring at Qin Yu. Now, he could only continue their journey with the outstanding Opening Heavens Sword Sect.

He had seen what happened earlier clearly. The swordsmen of the Opening Heavens Sword Sect that Qin Yu left behind had been waiting here for him. During that time, they had not been attacked, and that meant that the Opening Heavens Sword Sect truly had a way to scare off the Sword Demons in the Sword Prison. It was not just Qin Yu alone.

This was the key!

If the Opening Heavens Sword Sect was willing to pass on this technique…the moment he thought of this, Xu Jing laughed bitterly to himself and he shut down this thought.

If the situation was the other way around, he would not share this wonderful divine technique with others!

Keeping it for themselves was for the best.

Hugging onto the leg of the Opening Heavens Sword Sect was good already. If he provoked Qin Yu, his team was as good as dead.

Sucking in a breath of air, Xu Jing said, “Since that is the case, Sect Master Qin, we should head back to the shallow level of the Sword Prison. We might be able to save a few along the way.”

The environment of the Sword Prison was such that most top grade Sword Demons rarely appeared at the shallow level. This was because of the distribution of sword aura inside the Sword Prison. The sword sects of Swallow Mountain had confirmed this.

Although this was not very useful when the Sword Prison lost control in the past, heading to the shallow level could greatly reduce the chances of attacks from top grade Sword Demons.

This was especially so for the legendary grade Sword Demons.

History recorded that those surviving swordsmen from when the Sword Prison lost control had survived because legendary grade Sword Demons rarely attacked at the shallow level of the Sword Prison.

Qin Yu glanced at Xu Jing and shook his head, “We are not heading to the shallow level.”

Xu Jing’s face immediately darkened.

“Elder Xu, if you are willing to trust me, follow behind my sect. We will continue to head deeper into the Sword Prison. Otherwise, you can lead the remaining disciples of your sect to the shallow level.”

There was a few moments of silence and then Xu Jing said, “Sect Master Qin, I am not trying to offend you but…could you give me an explanation? I am not alone and these are outstanding disciples of the South Sea Sword Sect. They are the sect’s future and I have to be careful.

“I understand that this is asking a lot, but please take it as me owing you another favor. If you ask anything from me in the future, I will not turn you down!”

Qin Yu stared at him and calmly said, “This time, the loss of control of the Sword Prison is different from the past…the shallow level may not be safe.”

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