Chapter Sixty-Eight: The Chosen One

After receiving the news, Long Yun hurried toward the council hall. The council hall of Jade Sword Sect was situated atop the central peak among the six great mountains of the sect. By the time Long Yun arrived, the elders holding the seals from the other four branches and several disciples were already present.

Upon seeing Long Yun, the four seal-holding elders saluted him. After the battle within the Jade Sword Sect, Long Yun had earned tremendous respect among the elders and disciples. This, in turn, elevated the status of the Heart Sword branch significantly—a truly fortunate development.

Long Yun returned the salute with a smile, offered a slight bow to Shangguan Yu, and then took his seat.

“Elders, I’ve summoned you here today to announce something,” Shangguan Yu spoke gently, and the previously murmuring crowd fell silent.

“In ten days, the Azure Sect Hunting Tournament will begin. Though our Jade Sword Sect suffered great losses in the recent fierce battle, thankfully, our talented disciples were largely unharmed. Thus, we still have a chance in this tournament. I urge you not to give up, for I, Shangguan Yu, have never given up.”

Her gaze swept across everyone, and she continued in a clear voice, “Today, I’ve called you together to discuss our candidates for the tournament.”

Hearing this, Long Yun glanced around, his gaze pausing on a figure clad in red. He was surprised—why was she here?

Liu Xiaoxiao’s eyes also met Long Yun’s; she smiled sweetly at him, leaving Long Yun momentarily stunned. The relationship between them was not good. The feud with the Human Sword branch was largely due to Liu Xiaoxiao, so Long Yun had no particular fondness for her. He wondered why Shangguan Yu had brought her here.

“Quality matters more than quantity. Azure Sect has granted us ten spots for the tournament, but after the recent disaster, Jade Sword Sect can no longer fill all ten. After much deliberation, I’ve decided we will send only five disciples to participate in the Azure Sect Hunting Tournament,” Shangguan Yu declared.

Long Yun looked at Shangguan Yu with a faint smile. The proposal of five participants puzzled him. After the battle, there were fewer than five disciples with cultivation above the Bone-Melting Realm. Including Chang Yi, Xiao Leng, Chen Long, and himself, they barely reached nine. Shangguan Yu’s decision to limit it to five was surprising, and he wondered who the fifth would be.

Shangguan Yu continued, “Chang Yi, Chen Long, Xiao Leng, and Long Yun—you four are the seal-holding elders of the four main branches. You are still within the age limit, and you are the top four cultivators of your generation within Jade Sword Sect. You four will form the core of our team.”

This announcement was unsurprising and aligned with the plans of the elders and disciples.

Then Shangguan Yu smiled. “The fifth spot goes to Liu Xiaoxiao.”

She glanced at Liu Xiaoxiao, her lips curving in a satisfied smile, and explained to the astonished crowd, “Xiaoxiao is my personal disciple. When she reached the Condensing Qi Realm, she opened all seven spiritual apertures, becoming the third disciple in Jade Sword Sect to achieve this feat—just like Long Yun. That is why I made an exception and took her as my disciple. She has not disappointed me; in just a few months, she broke through to the Bone-Melting Realm. I have also found a spiritual bone for her replacement. Therefore, I am sending Xiaoxiao into battle. However, this is only my decision. If any other Bone-Melting disciples have doubts, they may challenge Xiaoxiao.”

Everyone fell silent. Shangguan Yu’s standards were exceedingly high; the fact that she accepted Liu Xiaoxiao as her disciple spoke volumes about Liu Xiaoxiao’s abilities.

Long Yun said nothing. From the moment he first saw Liu Xiaoxiao, he felt an inexplicable aversion, sensing a deep cunning within her. He preferred to avoid her, especially since she had repeatedly incited several Human Sword disciples against him, which only made him more dissatisfied. Yet, since Shangguan Yu had accepted her as a disciple, to object would be to challenge her authority, and Long Yun was not so foolish.

Besides, these were only his private feelings without concrete evidence. If he disliked her, he could simply keep his distance; there was no need to invite trouble.

“Elder Long Yun!” Liu Xiaoxiao parted her lips and laughed softly. “I believe there is a great misunderstanding between us, but I won’t say much. Time will reveal everything. For my past offenses, Xiaoxiao apologizes to Elder Long Yun.”

Long Yun secretly admired her. For a woman to be so adaptable was impressive, and her rapid progress in cultivation stirred his curiosity. He, with his advantage of a second cultivation and nine spiritual apertures, coupled with many fortuitous encounters, had only just broken through to the Transcendence Realm. Yet Liu Xiaoxiao, who rarely left her quarters, had advanced so quickly—only one level below him. He wondered how she had managed it.

Although he felt suspicious, outwardly Long Yun smiled and said, “You’re too formal, Sister Liu. We entered the sect the same year. If you don’t mind, call me Senior Brother. There’s no need to address me as elder.”

His reply was clever, showing everyone he bore no grudge for past events and leaving himself a good reputation.

Liu Xiaoxiao laughed brightly. “Then I’ll call you Senior Brother Long Yun!”

Long Yun nodded, without further response.

Shangguan Yu spoke solemnly, “This Azure Sect Hunting Tournament—Hua Ying Sect and its allied factions are waiting to see us fail. Previously, we had many allied sects for support, so we were not afraid. But after the recent disaster, most of our affiliated sects have defected to Hua Ying. The situation is grim; this may be the most difficult tournament we have ever faced. Therefore, after careful consideration, I am sending only you five. First, your cultivation is strong enough for self-preservation. Second, it avoids dragging each other down.”

Hearing her reasoning, all the elders nodded. If Shangguan Yu’s assessment was accurate, the decision made sense.

“Well, if there are no objections, let’s settle it,” Shangguan Yu concluded.

Everyone nodded, with no dissent. After Elder Qiu Di fell in the battle, Shangguan Yu’s opposition had vanished, making this meeting unusually smooth.

Satisfied with the outcome, Shangguan Yu declared, “Tonight I’ll depart for Azure Sect ahead of you. Tomorrow morning, you will set out. Elder Chen Huafei will lead the group, as you are the last surviving senior among the five branch elders.”

Chen Huafei nodded, a faint sadness in his eyes.

The meeting ended swiftly. Long Yun returned to the Heart Sword branch and informed everyone of the arrangements.

Yuan Chen had now reached the four-aperture Condensing Qi Realm, brimming with confidence and on the verge of breaking through to the Gathering Yuan Realm. With Long Yun leaving on this journey, Yuan Chen would lead the others into the Sword Shrine for cultivation.

The Sword Stone’s spirit had recovered much of its power, enough to support the cultivation of the Heart Sword branch’s disciples. Training in the Sword Shrine would yield twice the results.

With everything arranged, early the next morning, Long Yun and his group of six set out for Azure Sect.

Azure Sect was only five or six days’ journey from Jade Sword Sect. Shangguan Yu asked everyone to depart early, motivated in part by personal concerns.

The five disciples participating in the tournament were all entering Azure Sect for the first time; familiarizing themselves with its environment was essential.

Thus, after setting out, the six did not rush. Recently, disciples had been busy cultivating and helping restore Jade Sword Sect after the battle, expending much energy and focus.

Chen Huafei, being of the older generation, slowed the pace to allow the five younger ones to relax.

As a result, the journey took them eight days. By the time they arrived, many sects had already reached Azure Sect ahead of them—among them, Hua Ying Sect.