Ten thousand sword lights scattered, the momentum of the Thousand Fang Remnant Light technique was like a rainbow, annihilating countless Ice Condensation Beasts. In the end, these beasts turned into a sky full of water vapor, dissipating into the air.
Ye Jingwen raised his arm and swept it, retrieving his sword. Seeing the vast ice plain beneath his feet gradually become hazy, transforming into rock walls, a smile appeared on his face.
Although he possessed no rare treasures, as a Sword Cultivator, he had never relaxed in refining his lifebound sword, and he practiced diligently daily. When it came to combat techniques, he had always been confident.
This ancient formation was quite difficult, but precisely because of that, successfully breaking through it brought a greater sense of accomplishment. His twenty years of arduous practice had not been in vain.
After breaking the formation, he swung his arm, and the sword in his hand drew a streak of light as it flew back into the scabbard on his back. Then, he took out the medicine pouch distributed by the sect and carefully began to classify and pick the spiritual herbs growing around him.
He had only been picking for a short while when his spiritual sense swept over someone nearby. Turning his head, he saw a fellow sect cultivator, also at the late-stage Foundation Establishment realm.
Ye Jingwen paid it no mind. Those who could break through the formation in such a short time were the elite among elites, and they all harbored a sense of pride. In such situations, there was usually an unspoken understanding: if they knew each other, they might team up; if not, they would pretend not to see each other.
However, Ye Jingwen soon frowned. The reason was that this late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator he didn't recognize had started picking the spiritual herbs around him.
Within this rock cave, although there were no obvious partitions, there were slightly more spacious stone chambers connected by narrower stone passages. When this person had broken through the formation earlier, he was in another stone chamber. Now, however, he had come through the passageway and was picking herbs in the chamber where Ye Jingwen was.
Ye Jingwen noticed this person's herb-picking method. He didn't care at all about damaging the roots, simply digging up the herbs and stuffing them into his pouch. Consequently, his speed was much faster than Ye Jingwen's. Moreover, while picking, he kept glancing at the herbs on Ye Jingwen's side. It was clear he had planned this from the start, seeing that Ye Jingwen was picking slower, and intended to snatch some for himself.
"Senior Brother," Ye Jingwen couldn't help but speak up.
The cultivator kept his hands busy, only hurriedly raising his head to glance at him.
Such an attitude practically treated him like a Foundation Establishment novice! Anger rose in Ye Jingwen's heart. He said coldly, "Aren't you crossing the line?"
Although the cultivator remained busy, he spoke, "Why is Junior Brother so anxious? These spiritual herbs aren't yours alone. When we entered the formation, the Sect Master said that after breaking through the trials, we should pick all the spiritual herbs we see. Of course, whoever picks them gets them."
This sounded somewhat reasonable, but it was also rather sophistry. For fellow sect cultivators like them, if they truly just watched who could snatch faster, wouldn't it easily lead to disputes? Therefore, there were some customary conventions that everyone generally followed.
This person neither followed the rules nor engaged in sophistry. Although Ye Jingwen wasn't an overbearing person by nature, as a Sword Cultivator, how could he tolerate others stepping on his head? He immediately said coldly, "I am already picking the herbs in this place. Please leave this stone chamber, Senior Brother!"
Finally, the cultivator stopped pretending not to see. He clapped his hands, stood up, and looked Ye Jingwen over. "This Junior Brother, seeing how young you are, why care so much about these few herbs? It's not that I, your Senior Brother, love to argue with you. It's just that at my age, Core Formation is imminent. I can't let this opportunity slip by. How about you give way to your Senior Brother?"
If this person had explained with this reason from the start, Ye Jingwen might not have refused. He was a Sword Cultivator and relied on pills less than mainstream spell cultivators. But this person had first taken advantage, and only after finishing did he speak. Moreover, he kept referring to himself as 'Senior Brother' without a hint of request in his tone.
He coldly repeated, "Please leave this stone chamber, Senior Brother."
Seeing his attitude so unyielding, the man's face also showed annoyance. He looked at Ye Jingwen and said, "I am Dong Shiyang, a disciple under Perfected One Wuliang of Zhaoyang Peak, and a grand-disciple of Patriarch Zhenyang. May I ask for this Junior Brother's esteemed name?"
This was using status to pressure him. Ye Jingwen said coldly, "Ye Jingwen, disciple under Perfected One Qingyuan of Qingquan Peak."
Hearing this, the man's eyes flickered. "So Junior Brother is a grand-disciple under Patriarch Jinghe. No wonder you're so..." He looked Ye Jingwen up and down, his meaning clear without words.
Ye Jingwen grew even angrier. Although Dao Lord Jinghe had a bad temper and thus a not-so-great reputation, that was one thing for outsiders. Towards his own disciples, Dao Lord Jinghe never bullied or oppressed them. This person was also a disciple of the Xuanqing Sect, yet held such an attitude. How could it not infuriate him? He said angrily, "Senior Brother, please show some self-respect and do not insult the Patriarch of my Qingquan Peak!"
"Where did I insult him?" Dong Shiyang sneered twice. "This Junior Brother Ye, you're making something out of nothing. I haven't done anything."
"You—" Ye Jingwen's face turned as dark as water. Without another word, his sword left its scabbard, hovering in the air beside him.
Seeing him draw his sword, the man's expression also darkened. "Junior Brother, do you intend to attack a fellow disciple?"
Ye Jingwen also sneered. "Senior Brother Dong, you're also making something out of nothing. I merely drew my sword, and you accuse me of attacking you?"
"You—" The man's face also paled with anger.
The two were at a stalemate, the atmosphere ready to explode at any moment. Suddenly, a faint cracking sound came from nearby—another person had broken through the formation.
Dong Shiyang turned to look and was overjoyed. "Uncle-Master Bai!"
Ye Jingwen, however, frowned. This person was Bai Yanfei, a disciple of Dao Lord Zhenyang.
Bai Yanfei's expression was very unpleasant. He was still only at the mid-stage Foundation Establishment realm. Although for his age, this was considered quite good, he had always aspired to compare himself to young talents like Qin Shoujing and Li Lingxi, who had achieved Core Formation before a hundred years of age. In that regard, his progress was rather disappointing.
The Xuanqing Sect had always had a reputation for producing genius cultivators. In their generation, Qin Shoujing achieved Core Formation at seventy-eight, and Li Lingxi at ninety-six, both living up to the name of genius. Bai Yanfei, as a single spirit root disciple only received once every few hundred years, had always disdained comparing himself to other cultivators. But now, at fifty-seven, he was still only at mid-stage Foundation Establishment. It was almost certain he couldn't match Qin Shoujing, and even catching up to Li Lingxi would be a struggle. For Bai Yanfei's highly self-regarding personality, this was truly hard to bear.
To make matters worse, after entering this Myriad Laws of Nature Formation, he had expended great effort just to break through the first trial, the Five Spirits Body-Slaying, and had ended up in a sorry state, which infuriated him. Hearing someone call him now, he glared and said, "What are you calling for?!" His tone was quite bad.
Dong Shiyang had greeted him enthusiastically, only to be rebuffed. He was taken aback for a moment, but realizing there were others present, he immediately pretended not to mind and still forced a smile. "Uncle-Master Bai, you've also come out?"
Bai Yanfei also realized his tone had been too harsh just now. He gave a perfunctory "Hmm," swept his gaze over the two of them, and was about to find a path to continue forward.
How could Dong Shiyang let him leave just like that? He immediately said, "Uncle-Master Bai, aren't you going to pick herbs?"
Speaking of the rewards for this mission, Bai Yanfei actually didn't care much. His master was the Chief Supreme Elder of the Xuanqing Sect, and he himself had exceptional aptitude. He never lacked pills on a daily basis. But after all, herb gathering was the main task of this mission. Hearing this, he crouched down and casually picked two plants.
Ye Jingwen's face turned even greener. Bai Yanfei wasn't picking herbs from the chamber he had emerged from, but had just happened to walk over to Ye Jingwen's side and crouched down to pick!
Seeing Dong Shiyang glance at him smugly, Ye Jingwen, with a dark expression, spoke up. "Uncle-Master Bai!"
Bai Yanfei paid no attention, lazily responding with a "Hmm," thinking Ye Jingwen was also just greeting him like Dong Shiyang had.
But then, he heard Ye Jingwen say, "Uncle-Master Bai, as a senior, shouldn't you follow the rules?" Although he tried his best to restrain his anger, his words still carried a hint of fire.
Bai Yanfei stopped, stood up, turned around, and looked at Ye Jingwen with a frown. "What do you mean?"
Ye Jingwen said, "If you want to pick herbs, you should pick from the stone chamber you emerged from. This place is where I am currently picking. Not only do you not restrain the disciples of Zhaoyang Peak, but you also take the lead in breaking the rules?"
Bai Yanfei seemed momentarily confused by what he was saying. He turned to look at Dong Shiyang and saw Dong Shiyang looking at him with fearful respect, his attitude completely different from Ye Jingwen's.
With this contrast, his dissatisfaction with Ye Jingwen also surfaced. "What's wrong with you? Since you call me Uncle-Master Bai, why do you speak like this?"
Ye Jingwen was already angry. Seeing that Bai Yanfei not only didn't correct himself but also reprimanded him in a senior's tone, he sneered. "That depends on how Uncle-Master Bai acts as a senior. Taking the lead in breaking the rules, yet still putting on the airs of a senior?"
"You—" When had Bai Yanfei ever been spoken to like this? Counting left and right, besides his master, only a certain woman from Qingquan Peak had ever reprimanded him like this—and that was a memory he absolutely did not want to recall! "You are utterly unreasonable! Of course, whoever picks these herbs gets them. Why can't I pick them here?"
Dong Shiyang chimed in from the side. "Exactly. I also don't understand what this Junior Brother Ye is thinking. I suppose the rules of their Qingquan Peak are like this. But we're not from Qingquan Peak. Why should we follow them?"
Qingquan Peak! These three words ignited Bai Yanfei's anger. He sneered, "So it's someone from Qingquan Peak. Hmph! I should have known!"
Ye Jingwen was usually very proud of Qingquan Peak. How could he tolerate others insulting it? He immediately shouted, "Uncle-Master Bai, as a senior, please show some self-respect!"
Bai Yanfei said angrily, "How am I not showing self-respect? You, as a disciple, do you respect your seniors or not? Clearly, you are the one being disrespectful to a senior, yet you dare say I lack self-respect?"
Ye Jingwen glared at him fiercely. "Uncle-Master Bai, as a senior, you don't follow the rules first, you don't restrain your disciples afterward, and you show disdain towards my Qingquan Peak. Where is there a shred of self-respect? As disciples of Qingquan Peak, we naturally respect seniors who deserve respect. But if someone doesn't even know how to respect themselves, how can they be worthy of others' respect?"
"You—" These words were truly heavy. Bai Yanfei's expression changed. Seeing Ye Jingwen's flying sword circling around him, he also sneered. "Fine! Want to fight, is that it? Since that's the case, why look for reasons?" Saying this, he irrationally reached to his waist, took down a crescent-shaped curved blade, and with a flash of blade light, infused it with spiritual energy.
Seeing this senior not only being unreasonable but also about to fight a junior, Ye Jingwen was also enraged. Forgetting the sect rule forbidding disciples from harming each other, he raised his arm and pointed. The flying sword circling beside him shone with bright light.
Seeing this, Dong Shiyang also drew his own magical instrument. The situation was on the verge of erupting.
"Boom!" A cracking sound came as another disciple broke through the formation. He was happily picking spiritual herbs with a smile when he saw the three people not far away with blades and swords drawn against each other. He was shocked. "Senior Brother Ye!" It was Luo Fengxue.