Zhang Dingtian shook his head. “Of course not. Humility’s Gate is a pillar of humanity that works to catch traitors to humanity. If anyone’s offended by Humility’s Gate, they must be a traitor.”
Lu Yin was surprised, as when he had first arrived, the voice of the person who had spoken to him was clearly unhappy with him, and Lu Yin thought he had heard disgust.
“However, there is a bit of resentment towards Humility’s Gate’s Fourteenth Gate,” Zhang Dingtian continued.
Lu Yin was caught off guard. “Towards the Fourteenth Gate?”
Zhang Dingtian nodded. “A long time ago, the Fourteenth Gate arrested one of the Liu family’s direct descendants. They were interrogated, but it was finally proven that the man was innocent. However, that man eventually committed suicide as he couldn’t endure the humiliation and hatred he suffered. That’s why the entire Liu family hates the Fourteenth Gate.”
When he reached this point in his story, Zhang Dingtian suddenly reacted to something, and he looked at Lu Yin in surprise. “You wouldn’t be…?”
Lu Yin nodded with a wry smile. “I’m from the Fourteenth Gate.”
Zhang Dingtian was speechless. “Now I understand why you’re allowed to observe the Sword Monument; it’s not because you’re from the White Dragon Clan.”
“Tell me, if I try to arrest someone from the Liu family while I’m here, would I be able to pull it off?” Lu Yin asked.
Zhang Dingtian answered without the slightest hesitation, “That’s impossible. After that incident, the Liu family declared that any family member who was considered suspicious has to be interrogated by the Liu family itself, and not even Humility’s Gate is allowed to interfere. This was said by the Liu family ancestor, and I’m talking about an actual Progenitor,1 not just some ancestor.”
Lu Yin’s heart fell. Sure enough, his assignment was going to be a difficult one. If the Liu family was insisting on conducting any and all interrogations on their family members, it would be better for Humility’s Gate to investigate the matter in secret. There was no way Humility’s Gate would ever trust the results of an interrogation carried out by a person’s own family members.
Despite what had been said by the Liu family’s Progenitor, even if the Liu Family’s Progenitor had made such a declaration because a descendant had been wronged, he was playing dirty. Humility’s Gate had their own Progenitor, and there would be no compromise. Lu Yin’s mission was clearly intended to be a statement that Humility’s Gate still intended to prosecute the members of the Liu family. However, issuing an arrest warrant was one thing, and actually arresting the suspected traitor was an entirely different matter.
No wonder he had been given such an excessive reward; they had already prepared an insurmountable task for him. Any bit of carelessness on Lu Yin’s part could draw the attention of the Liu family’s ancestors and Progenitor or Progenitors into stepping forward. Just thinking about the possibility was enough for Lu Yin’s scalp to go numb. The Fourteenth Gate would not let Lu Yin bear the wrath of the Liu Family’s Progenitor on his own, would they?
Lu Yin’s assignment had been given to him by the commander of the Fourteenth Gate himself, and Lu Yin was currently assuming the identity of the son-in-law of the White Dragon Clan’s main family. It appeared that the intention of this mission was to use the status of both the White Dragon Clan, and Humility’s Gate. If Lu Yin did end up successfully capturing Liu Ke, the entire Liu family would not express hostility towards Lu Yin, as it would not be worth it.
“Even if you end up failing your mission, you absolutely can’t even suggest arresting anyone from the Liu family, Brother Long. This is for your own good,” Zhang Dingtian cautioned.
Before long, several people stopped Lu Yin and Zhang Dingtian from proceeding forward.
“You’re Long Qi? You don’t look like much. How did you get with the White Dragon Clan’s princess? Come with us and let us brothers learn from you,” one of the people started mocking Lu Yin as several others laughed.
Zhang Dingtian took a step forward. “Liu Meng, back down. Mr. Long was invited to observe the Sword Monument, and it was decided upon by the clan.”
Liu Meng grew angry. “Zhang Dingtian, who do you think you are? How does some outsider manage to get Master Yijian as their master, let alone someone who uses a saber? I’m going to teach you a lesson!”
His hand moved, and sword light flashed as a sword stabbed at Zhang Dingtian.
Lu Yin’s eyes flickered when he saw the man’s attack. Just like Zhang Dingtian, this man was a Cruiser. While the man looked like a bandit, he was clearly skilled with the sword, and his attack was comparable to the Thirteen Swords’ Second Sword. The moment the sword left the sheaf, a domain enveloped the area, and the environment subtly changed due to the influence of the domain. This was a level that touched the level of the Fourth Sword.
Also, this sword attack carried a strange vibration that resonated with other swords. Lu Yin had seen something similar from Toolwielder, the Realmling of the Sixth Mainland’s War Martial Realm. This member of the Liu family was clearly not weak, and had a significant level of mastery of the sword.
Zhang Dingtian’s eyes narrowed, and his right hand grabbed his saber as purple and red lines covered his body: eight lined battle force. There was a clanging sound, and Lu Yin’s eyes snapped wide open. In front of him, half of the sword flew away and stabbed into the ground. The other half remained in Liu Meng’s hand, but blood dripped onto the ground from the hilt of the sword.
The man’s right arm trembled, and he finally failed to retain a hold of his weapon, and the broken sword fell to the ground. His companions stared at Zhang Dingtian in horror.
Zhang Dingtian slowly sheathed his large blade, and he also removed his eight lined battle force. “Get out of our way.”
These words roused Liu Meng as though from a dream. He gritted his teeth and glared at Zhang Dingtian, clearly unwilling to accept his situation.
Zhang Dingtian stared back.
In the end, Liu Meng moved aside, and Zhang Dingtian and Lu Yin continued their walk towards the Sword Monument.
After the two left, Liu Meng’s clenched right hand slowly opened, but his arm did not stop trembling. His hand had been completely shattered. It had only been one attack from that saber, and yet he had not even been able to see as the blade had been pulled from its sheath before he had been defeated.
“Brother Meng, are you alright?” one of the other people asked.
Liu Meng shouted angrily, “Go away! You’re useless!”
He then turned and left without even looking at the broken sword he had left on the ground.
There were a few other people in the nearby area, but none of them dared speak. After they saw Liu Meng leave, they all glanced in the direction Lu Yin and Zhang Dingtian had gone with expressions of helplessness.
Elsewhere, Lu Yin praised his friend, “Brother Zhang, your bladework has improved from before. That was an impressive quick-draw technique you just used.”
Zhang Dingtian said, “That’s a technique that I got from the Sword Monument. The technique has a total of nine moves, but I’ve only mastered three of them. The quick-draw is the start of the entire technique, as well as one of the moves I managed to learn.”
“There’s a saber technique in the Sword Monument?” Lu Yin wondered.
Zhang Dingtian smiled. “The Sword Monument is just what the Liu family calls the stone. It doesn’t just have sword techniques, as there are also techniques for bare-handed combat, spears, and even movement techniques. There are rumors that some people have even received sourcebox arrays from the monument. Regardless, it contains all kinds of things.”
Lu Yin grew more and more curious, but then he suddenly remembered what Elder Long Kui had mentioned before about the legends of how the Sword Monument had been left behind by the mythical ancient Progenitor Wu Tian, who had developed weapon useage for humans, and that had been the inheritance he had left in the Sword Monument.
There was no proof that Progenitor Wu Tian had ever lived, but the Sword Monument had stood for countless years. If one could uncover the monument’s origins, they would likely learn much about the ancient times.
For half a day, Zhang Dingtian led Lu Yin closer to the Sword Monument, and they finally arrived where the Liu family lived. Just as Zhang Dingtian had said, their living setup was something of a tribal layout, and it looked like a village.
The members of the Liu family lived in ordinary houses, and the entire place looked like a simple village, but the entire village held a terrifying sword aura that made Lu Yin’s heart skip a beat.
Just a glance was enough to know a master lived here. It was clear why Long Kui had not dared enter the Liu family’s territory without permission, as he could easily die.
Such a family was troublesome to cross, as they were fully united. Lu Yin understood why the Fourteenth Gate had hoped to find an opportunity to deceive the family and catch Liu Ke.
The village was arranged around the Sword Monument, but the buildings grew more sporadic and spread out the closer one moved to the Sword Monument. The Liu family’s cultivators were sitting cross-legged on the ground and staring at the Sword Monument. This was where the Liu family trained.
“Every member of the Liu family is given three opportunities throughout their entire lives to observe the Sword Monument. Usually, the first time is when they are still innocent of things, as the Sword Monument can help them find the most suitable cultivation path for them to follow. Unfortunately, few people gain anything from this first observation.
“Their second opportunity comes when they become an adult, again with the hope that they will receive an inheritance from the Sword Monument. Once again, very few people get anything.
“The third chance is up to the individual. Some don’t accept their failure to gain anything, and so they observe the Sword Monument twice in a row. Others leave their last chance for their old age to have a chance to proceed further after they stagnate.”
Zhang Dingtian looked over at Lu Yin. “It doesn’t matter who it is, everyone has a very low chance of receiving anything from observing the Sword Monument. Brother Long, good luck.”
Lu Yin nodded and continued walking forward. He was focused on the Sword Monument. He had to be within ten meters of the Sword Monument in order to have a chance of receiving anything from it, and he still had a ways to go.
The Liu family had very few members when compared to other top families, but they were still not a small family. Lu Yin saw many small children as he walked, and all of them were quite talented.
Suddenly, Lu Yin’s eyes grew dull and he turned to focus on a woman sitting cross-legged on the ground a thousand meters to his right; Liu Tianmu?
Zhang Dingtian looked at Lu Yin and fearfully said, “That woman got here about a month ago, and while she has the Liu surname, she’s not a member of the Liu family. There are many people in the Perennial World who have the same surname, and she came from very far away. She’s considered an outsider, but she has amazing talent for the sword, and she managed to draw the attention of the entire family. For now, I can’t compare to her at all.”
Bullshit! That’s Liu Tianmu! Lu Yin said to himself. She was one of the Innerverse’s Ten Arbiters, and given her status, it was impossible for Zhang Dingtian to be able to easily reach the same level of strength as this woman.
At best, Zhang Dingtian was a bit stronger than Liu Shaoqiu at the moment. It was enough to put him among the best of the Sword Sect’s disciples, but it was impossible for Zhang Dingtian to catch up to Liu Tianmu.
Zhang Dingtian had never known Liu Tianmu, as the Ten Arbiters’ names had been kept secret. Otherwise, Zhang Dingtian would have shown a different reaction.
Lu Yin believed that Liu Tianmu had not revealed much of her strength, and nothing of the Thirteen Swords. If she had, she would not have simply drawn a bit of attention. Liu Tianmu was a talent on the same level as Wang Yi, and she could compare to the cream of the crop even within the Liu family.
When Lu Yin looked over at Liu Tianmu, she sensed something, and she looked back at Lu Yin, only to be stunned at what she saw.
Lu Yin saw Liu Tianmu react to seeing him in the exact same fashion as Unseen Light and Yuhua Mavis. Even if Liu Tianmu was typically as unruffled as calm water, Lu Yin was able to see a stupefied expression on her face for a moment right near the Sword Monument.
Lu Yin smiled at her, but did not speak. He simply continued on his way towards the Sword Monument.
Liu Tianmu decided to look for Lu Yin after he left the Sword Monument. Her mindset had been too disturbed to train. How could Lu Yin be in this place? Not only that, he had been escorted by Zhang Dingtian himself, which indicated that Lu Yin’s status was something impressive. Just what was going on?
The Liu family did not protect the Sword Monument as fiercely as the Daynight clan protected their ancestral plaque. The Daynight clan perpetually had elders stationed around their stone plaque, and they looked like living fossils who stood guard over the stone.
Lu Yin looked around and saw a few scattered youths who all seemed to be focused on the Sword Monument.
“Brother Long, you’ll only get a chance to receive an inheritance if you are able to advance to within ten meters from the Sword Monument. Please,” Zhang Dingtian encouraged.
Lu Yin looked up at the towering Sword Monument and took a deep breath. He then slowly bowed where he stood. “This junior was given the opportunity to observe the Sword Monument. I give my respects to the seniors present who are mediating, and apologize for disturbing the seniors present. I beg for forgiveness upon the intrusion.”
Lu Yin bent low with a pious expression on his face.
Zhang Dingtian stepped back and quietly watched events unfold.
There were many of the Liu family’s powerhouses watching, and they softened a bit when they saw Lu Yin’s behavior. While they did not have a favorable opinion of the Fourteenth Gate, Lu Yin was showing respect for the Liu family. This was not bad to see.
Lu Yin readily admitted that he would frequently put on an act, and his skills had greatly improved. The pious and reverent expression he had revealed when looking at the Sword Monument had not been directed towards the monument itself, but instead Lu Yin had pictured the Mavis Bank, and had thought of the endless resources that the bank represented.
[1] Something important to note is that the word for “ancestor” is the same as the word for “Progenitor,” though the usage is clearly not the same. This allows for confusion sometimes among the characters. ☜
