Chapter 64

Chapter 64: The Star-Settling Star

When hearing about the events at Chang’s house earlier, the elders had been more astonished and contemplative. At this moment, upon learning that Nie Qing’e and Lu Qing had died early at the "Tan family" and later, in their ghostly forms, had led the resentful spirits away for several juniors, the elders collectively showed signs of sorrow.

“I remember that young knight, Nie Qing’e,” Ling Yunzi spoke, “During the blood demon calamity, we were assigned to the same team. At that time, she and Lu Qing had already become a couple, and their bond was very strong. I thought that in the years to come, the martial world would surely have another pair of ‘heroes.’”

Unexpectedly, the ‘hero couple’ never came to be, as both died silently and without a trace.

With this conversation, a heavier silence filled the room. Bai Zhengliu and Mei Yinghan did not speak but, like the elders, fell into the same sorrow and regret.

However, after a moment, they both gathered their spirits and began discussing "reincarnation."

Regardless of whether it was true or not, it served as comfort for those still alive.

Sure enough, as they heard this, the expressions of the elders softened. When they looked at Bai Zhengliu and Mei Yinghan again, there was a faint smile of relief on their faces.

“If that’s really the case, the pair of junior brothers who were with you should also feel happy.”

Bai Zhengliu and Mei Yinghan thought of the Jun brothers’ condition and nodded. “Exactly.”

After this, they began discussing the most crucial item that had played a key role in their dangerous situation at the “Tan family,” the valuable hairpin.

It could be said that without that hairpin, the two of them likely wouldn’t be standing here now.

Bai Zhengliu and Mei Yinghan talked about what they had heard when Qian Gui bought the hairpin and also mentioned that Qian Gui said he would have someone inquire further. After finishing, Mei Yinghan said, “I was just thinking, if there are so many such miraculous objects in the world, should the Tian Mountain Sect start preparing earlier?”

As soon as his words fell, he noticed his master’s gaze had swept around the room and landed on him.

Mei Yinghan: “…?”

Ling Bozi seemed to want to say something but stopped himself.

Mei Yinghan furrowed his brow, slowly following his master’s gaze, and looked down at his waist.

There, hanging was a sword.

And next to the sword was the Twenty-Eight Generals.

For a moment, Mei Yinghan almost thought his master had seen the miraculous nature of the Twenty-Eight Generals. However, soon, Ling Bozi spoke again, saying, “Listening to your stories, I’m reminded of something.”At this point, it was Bai Zhengliu and Mei Yinghan's turn to hold their breath. They both looked toward Ling Bozi and saw him turn his head again, making eye contact with Ling Xiaoze.

After that, the pair of senior brothers nodded in unison before turning back toward the two younger disciples in front of them.

Bai Zhengliu and Mei Yinghan had a sense of foreboding. They were certain that Ling Bozi was about to reveal something very important!

They waited in full anticipation. However, when Ling Bozi finally spoke, he asked, “Yinghan, do you still remember the situation when you were choosing your sword?”

Mei Yinghan was taken aback.

At this point, another rule of the Tian Mountain Sect needed to be mentioned.

Unlike Emei, which excels in swordplay and palm techniques, or Shaolin, known for its mastery of staff and fist techniques, when people speak of the Tian Mountain Sect in the martial world, it’s hard for them to think of any unique martial arts that the disciples from here possess.

If anything, lightness skill could barely be considered a specialty. But how could this simple lightness skill compare to all the other external martial arts in the world?

In the end, people would just shake their heads and vaguely say, “I’ve seen many Tian Mountain disciples, and they seem to study all kinds of martial arts.”

Originally, this was a vague answer, but in truth, it was the reality.

At Tian Mountain, there wasn’t a special, secret martial art that the sect imparted to its disciples. Instead, all children who entered the sect were first taught basic martial arts, and through this process, the sect would observe what they enjoyed and what they were good at, then teach them accordingly.

For example, the younger disciples Bai Zhengliu and Mei Yinghan had met before—Jade Han and Han Shu—one learned the whip, while the other learned the saber. As for Mei Yinghan, there was no need to mention him.

Moreover, from their previous experiences with the Demon-Slaying Alliance, Bai Zhengliu also knew that despite Mei Yinghan always carrying a sword with him, he was well-versed in concealed weapons, saber techniques, and more, and was particularly skilled in them.

A versatile sect had produced versatile disciples, which should have been a normal thing.

However—

There was a “however.”

The sect may have been “versatile,” but that didn’t mean every disciple was versatile.

For example, Ling Bozi was someone who had studied both sabers and swords. As for Ling Xiaoze, his expertise lay in fist techniques, palm techniques, and even the art of acupoint striking. As for Ling Yunzi, she had taken a more unconventional path, using a pair of spikes as her weapon.The reason why the entire Tian Mountain Sect is so harmonious is largely because their "inheritance" isn't one-sided. When disciples want to learn swordsmanship, they go to Ling Bozi. When they want to learn fist techniques, they go to Ling Xiaoze. Although the one who is formally called "Master" is still the person who brought them into the sect, in terms of actual teaching, it's a collective effort.

As for Mei Yinghan's sword selection, it happened when he was fifteen years old, which was already seven or eight years ago.

At that time, he had grown into his frame and had learned the Tian Mountain Sword Technique up to the fifth level from Ling Bozi. Ling Bozi then said that Mei Yinghan no longer needed to practice with a regular iron sword, and it was time for him to acquire a proper weapon.

Later, Ling Bozi took Mei Yinghan to the Tian Mountain Sect's weapon storage. Mei Yinghan immediately set his eyes on the sword he now carries, "Zhen Xing" (Star of the Town). Ling Bozi, pleased, told him that this had once been his own master's weapon, Mei Yinghan's grandmaster's weapon. Now that it had resurfaced, his master's spirit in heaven would surely be pleased.

Today, upon hearing Ling Bozi's question, Mei Yinghan spoke of this again.

His tone was normal, as he truly didn’t think there was anything wrong with the matter.

It was a common practice for all disciples to change their weapon at around fifteen or sixteen. It wasn’t just him who had used his grandmaster’s weapon. After all, Tian Mountain was a sect that had a basic understanding of all sorts of martial arts, and the weapons left by the grandmaster were not just piling up in the weapon storage, but enough to equip half of the disciples.

Mei Yinghan had never thought much of it before, but now, when Ling Bozi brought up the "extraordinary object," he couldn’t help but think more about it. “Master, are you saying that my sword… the sword left by my master…? But—”

However, in the Chang Manor and the Tan Family, Bai Zhengliu’s twenty-eight generals struck several times, but the Zhen Xing Sword didn’t respond at all.

As a swordsman, Mei Yinghan naturally treasured his weapon. But if he were to say that Zhen Xing had some special quality, he really hadn’t noticed anything.

He had doubts in his heart and looked toward Ling Bozi. Ling Bozi let out a long sigh before speaking again, “Actually, after my master passed away, Zhen Xing disappeared.”

Everyone present: “…”

Well, specifically, Ling Yunzi, Bai Zhengliu, and Mei Yinghan.

They all froze and instinctively looked at the long sword hanging at Mei Yinghan's waist.

Ling Yunzi couldn’t help but blurt out, “What do you mean by ‘disappeared,’ Senior Brother?!”

Ling Bozi said, “This matter is complicated. If we really want to talk about it, it might be necessary to start from dozens of years ago, back when our Tian Mountain Sect was first established. But one thing is certain—Zhen Xing really did disappear when my master passed away. It wasn’t until the day Yinghan was selecting a weapon that I opened the weapon storage and saw Zhen Xing at a glance. At that time, I was also shocked, but after thinking about it, I figured that someone must have found this sword from some obscure corner. Just as Yinghan arrived, he immediately took a liking to it. I thought to myself, this must be fate.”

“Although later, when I asked around, no one said they had found a sword and casually put it into the weapon storage, but…”

“But I never thought about matters involving ghosts and spirits. At worst, I just thought that my master must have approved of me as his disciple and sent the sword as a divine sign. After that, days passed, and my curiosity faded.”

At this point, Ling Bozi gave a faint, bitter smile.“If Yinghan and Bai Shaoxia hadn’t brought up those ghostly matters today, I would’ve never remembered this event.”

Mei Yinghan felt a complex mix of emotions when he heard this.

He had used Zhen Xing for many years, and his affection for his weapon was genuine. Now, he learned that there was such a hidden history behind the sword.

The young man took a deep breath, his fingers lightly brushing across the sword's hilt. When he looked up again, he said, “But Master, you mentioned earlier that ‘perhaps someone found this sword somewhere’—there is indeed a possibility of that. Even now, I think that may be the real truth. So why did you bring up this sword's extraordinary nature? Is there more to it?”

Upon hearing this, Ling Bozi's gaze grew more complicated. He said, “That’s right. I didn’t want to bring this up before, because Master passed away many years ago, and I wanted to preserve his dignity. But you and Bai Shaoxia have encountered vengeful spirits one after another, and—at first, I thought the strange things Master said were the result of his old age, illness, and declining mind! But now, thinking back, I’m afraid…”

Mei Yinghan asked, “Master?”

Ling Bozi sighed, “Enough, enough. Today, I’ll start from the beginning and tell you all. Senior Brother,” he turned to Ling Xiaozi, “If I miss anything, please make sure to add to it.”

Ling Xiaozi nodded, saying, “Of course.”

Ling Yunzi looked confused and asked, “What exactly are you talking about? I don’t know anything at all.”

Ling Xiaozi replied, “You weren’t in the sect at the time.”

Ling Bozi added, “That’s right. Junior Sister, don’t you remember? Before Master passed away, you were traveling outside. By the time you received the news and returned, Master was already bedridden, unable to get up. At that point, of course, he couldn’t say anything.”

As her senior brothers spoke, memories slowly returned to Ling Yunzi’s mind. A flicker of pain passed across her face as she murmured, “That’s right. All these years, I’ve felt guilty. It was clearly Master who took us in and raised us, yet I…”

Ling Xiaozi said, “Don’t think like that. Master always said that martial artists should venture into the world. Look at the disciples of our sect who are currently living out his words. When you were outside, Master was very supportive and happy for you.”

Ling Bozi added, “You didn’t miss Master’s final days. You served him by his bedside for three whole months—that’s enough.”

Ling Yunzi softly responded with an “Mm,” but there was still sadness in her expression.

The three senior siblings comforted each other. During this time, Bai and Mei remained silent.

When Ling Yunzi had calmed down, Ling Bozi turned back to the two young men waiting nearby.

He searched his memories. Master had said so much, how much of it had he dismissed as nonsense, never taking it seriously? How many details and connections had been overlooked?

It was only because Ling Bozi had spent all these years mourning his master, remembering him, that now, when faced with the two young men, he could quickly sort out the cause and effect and speak.“Master was born in the previous dynasty,” Ling Bozi began, “When he was young, although the war had not yet broken out, there were many rumors among the people about a foolish emperor being bewitched by an evil person, using living guards and palace maids for dark rituals.”

At these words, Bai and Mei were both shocked and stunned!

“Rituals?”

“Living people?!”

The two of them exclaimed in unison.

Seeing the young men’s reaction, Ling Bozi let out a slight sigh: “No wonder you didn’t know. This matter is too brutal and terrifying, and it involves many… Had Master not mentioned it to me, I wouldn’t have known either.”

The author’s note:

Earlier, a little angel asked if Mei Yinghan had a “golden finger.” Well, Mei’s golden finger has started now =v="