The soul of the Ageless Ice Unicorn became one with Chen Wentian. All of its memories from many thousands of years ago were now a part of him. Its original home was in a blessed realm known to the unicorns only as the Eternal Mountain Range. It was home to many different herds of unicorns and a paradise untouched by humans or demons. As origin beasts with human form and human-like intelligence, they even developed towns and cities, a self-enclosed civilization that thrived for eons.
All of that ended when the human cultivators arrived. The first group to discover the blessed land was known as the Limitless Sword Mansion. Their cultivators were all extremely powerful and managed to establish a foothold which led to even more humans arriving.
The Eternal Mountain Range was isolated and relatively weak in terms of a blessed land. The various unicorn herds tried to fight back and were eventually slaughtered. The soul didn't know if any survived. All it wanted was revenge against the humans that had destroyed its home.
Since the soul was a part of him now, he would naturally seek revenge if the opportunity came to him. However, the Eternal Mountain Range and the Limitless Sword Mansion were names unfamiliar to him. He didn't know where to look or which part of the vast world they were located. It didn't matter anyway since they were far too powerful for him to handle at the moment.
Chen Wentian looked around and spotted the shopkeeper. He grabbed the blue horn and headed over. Since it was the horn of an origin beast, it was still a priceless treasure. He already had plans for it.
When he got to the counter, he noticed that the middle-aged shopkeeper looked worn out but happy. The man was busy finishing the sale of a huge pile of swords for Lin Qingcheng. Another glance around the shop and he noticed that almost all of the swords had disappeared from the various displays.
"Lord immortal, how may I help you?" The shopkeeper bowed toward him.
"Oh, I just wanted to buy this horn. How much?" Chen Wentian asked.
"No, no, no. I can't accept lord immortal's money for such a small item. Especially when your disciples have bought out most of my store. You can take it, it's free!"
Chen Wentian glanced curiously at Lin Qingcheng who stuck her tongue at him.
"I also remembered that the disciples of the House of Paradise could also use some fancy swords." She said matter-of-factly. "I should be done soon. Mister sword seller is just wrapping my last few purchases."
Chen Wentian shrugged and beckoned to his other disciples who were waiting by the entrance. "We can wait outside and get some fresh air."
"Yes, master."
Chen Wentian led the way and exited the sword shop.
As soon as he did so, a sharp spiritual energy swept over from across the street and collided against his spiritual aura.
"Hahaha!" Loud laughter rang out, drawing everyone's attention.
A group of cultivators walked over, led by a male immortal. He was tall and slender, clean-shaven with a long face and an unnaturally prominent jawline. His age wasn't immediately apparent as he seemed somewhat youthful but also old at the same time.
"Immortal Blue Dragon Chen Wentian. I have heard of your name, an unknown independent immortal who suddenly rose to fame in recent years. I didn't think I would run into you here, in front of such a shabby place. Did you get lost? Such a sword shop should be far beneath your status unless you're struggling with money. Hahaha!"
Chen Wentian's spiritual aura flared up, sending a wall of blue flame toward the other immortal. He didn't know why the other person had chosen to be rude so he was simply testing them.
The immortal raised his hand and blocked the incoming flames. He tried to not show it but he was struggling greatly, a testament to the difference in their cultivation.
"Heh, a gentleman should fight with his words first, not with his fists." The immortal retorted.
Chen Wentian scoffed, "I don't know who you are. I don't know if you're a stray dog or a demon."
"Ill-mannered… My name is Immortal Thousand Swords Jin Wu, master of the Mount Huang Sect."
"Uh huh…" Chen Wentian said and drew back his spiritual energy.
Jin Wu let out a pained noise when he straightened his back. The difference in their strength was now even more apparent. He couldn't be at more than the second or third level of strengthening. Compared to Chen Wentian who had already begun to touch the Spirit King Realm, he was far inferior.
Jin Wu brushed off his robes and said, "As I was saying, Immortal Chen, if you are unfamiliar with Everblade City, the members of the Eastern Sword Alliance are more than willing to show you around. You don't have to poke your head around randomly and get swindled by these commoners. You should have known better. You don't have to embarrass your disciples like this."
Just as he finished speaking, Lin Qingcheng emerged from the sword shop. The shopkeeper followed behind her, bowing and thanking her over and over as if she was a deity. After bidding her goodbye, the shopkeeper hung a sign that said 'Closed' and shut the shop's doors.
Jin Wu watched the exchange with confusion, "What happened there?"
Chen Wentian waved his hand, "It's nothing, just my disciple who got a little too excited and bought out the entire store."
A brief expression of astonishment appeared on Jin Wu's face before it disappeared. Chen Wentian smirked, knowing what the other person was thinking about. Even for a common shop that catered to mortal cultivators, it required a sizable fortune to buy out its entire stock which could be anywhere from a few hundred to over a thousand swords. A mere disciple spending that kind of money was unthinkable for normal immortal sects. Even for the Mount Huang Sect which was an influential member of the Eastern Sword Alliance, it was practically impossible.
"Your disciples?" Jin Wu said, looking over at the women behind Chen Wentian, "I thought they were your concubines that you were taking out from a stroll. My mistake. My mistake. Hahaha!"
Chen Wentian frowned. His disciples were quite eye-catching and didn't look like normal disciples. Compared to Jin Wu's disciples who all wore bland white uniforms, Chen Wentian's disciples all wore unique and colorful outfits. They were better dressed than even princesses. In his opinion, his disciples were a hundred times better. Even trying to compare them was an insult.
"Yes, they are my disciples." Chen Wentian replied, "Although I only recently became an immortal sect master, I think I have performed my duties more than adequately. Compared to them, your disciples seem quite incompetent. You have so many and yet none of them are better than mine."
A wave of discontent erupted from the sea of white robes but Jin Wu couldn't find any words to retort. As immortals, both sect masters could use spiritual energy to sense the rough age and cultivation of each other's mortal disciples. Although Jin Wu had several disciples at the peak of the Spirit Initiate Realm, their ages were all quite substantial with none below the age of forty. On the other hand, Wu Qianyu was still thirty-two and Li Yuechan was thirty-one. There were also Lin Qingcheng and Zhou Ziyun who were both barely over the age of twenty and yet already at the upper levels of the Spirit Initiate Realm. The gap between the two sects and their disciples was simply massive.
Jin Wu finally let out a snort of indignation. He waved his wide sleeves about and then grasps his hands behind his back. He tilted his head towards the sky in an air of arrogance.
"Hmph. You turned out far below my expectations. How boring. We will see just whose disciples are strong at the Convocation of Swords. Let's go!"
"Yes, master!" His disciples answered as one.
Chen Wentian watched them march away, unsure of what to make of the situation. He felt a breath beside him and turned to see Zhou Ziyun.
"Hey, what do you think?" He asked her.
She nodded, "The Mount Huang Sect, sect master Immortal Thousand Swords Jin Wu... they are part of the so-called Four Greats of the Eastern Sword Alliance. The other three are the Mount Tai Sect, the Mount Xiong Sect, and the Mount Yun Sect. If one of them is like this, perhaps the other three will be the same. But I can't think of a reason why the Four Greats would want to antagonize you. Perhaps Immortal Thousand Swords Jin Wu simply wanted to measure your ability since you are a nameworthy adversity that emerged only recently."
"Ah…" He scratched his head. "That's possible I guess."
She continued, "Your performance was commendable. Now they will think you are an ill-mannered philanderer who spoils a bunch of women instead of accepting proper disciples."
"Hey!" He complained.
This earned a chorus of giggles from his disciples as if they all agreed with Zhou Ziyun's assessment.
"Hey!" He said again but it was useless as they all burst out laughing.
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