Chapter 607: Carefree Sword Master

An azure peacock, fifty feet in size, flew rapidly through the sky thousands of feet above.

Sitting on the peacock's back were a somewhat disheveled old man in a white robe and a beautiful woman in her early thirties, dressed in palace attire. The old man had an azure gourd hanging from his waist and reeked of alcohol.

"This Green Pear Spirit Wine is quite good," the old man mumbled. "There's just too little of it; I can't drink to my heart's content. If I had known, I would have asked Tianjizi for a few more jars on the way back." The old man in white let out a burp and said with some regret.

The beautiful woman in palace attire smiled and said, "Senior Martial Brother Ye, this Green Pear Spirit Wine is a fourth-tier spirit wine, reportedly brewed from thousand-year-old spiritual Green Pear Origin Fruits. Tianjizi loves wine dearly, so it's already quite good that he gave you some. By the way, did you find the Seven Absolutes Blade Emperor?"

"No," replied the old man. "The Seven Absolutes Blade Emperor is reclusive and his whereabouts are unpredictable. I didn't encounter him. I originally wanted to spar with him, but it's a pity." As the old man in white spoke, he took another swig of spirit wine.

Suddenly, a look of surprise appeared on his face, his eyes filling with pleasant astonishment.

"Sword intent! Someone has actually comprehended sword intent!" he exclaimed. "Junior Martial Sister Yang, I'll go ahead." The old man in white left these words, transforming into a white streak of light and flying towards the ground.

On the bluestone plaza, hundreds of flying swords soared into the air, swaying continuously and emitting crisp sword hums.

Wang Qingshan's face was pale, and an astonishing sword intent emanated from him. Around him, thousands of faint azure flying swords hovered; this was precisely the "Hundred Swords Unite."

Zhou Yunxiao felt the astonishing sword intent emanating from Wang Qingshan, and his expression became solemn.

"Slash!"

As Wang Qingshan's command fell, thousands of azure flying swords rushed towards Zhou Yunxiao. Mid-flight, they merged into an azure giant sword over five hundred feet long, accompanied by a piercing rush of air, menacingly slashing towards Zhou Yunxiao. This was the true "Hundred Swords Unite."

Zhou Yunxiao dared not be slow. Holding his red long blade with both hands, a layer of crimson flames appeared on the blade with a whoosh, enveloping it and radiating intense heat. He chopped at the void in front of him, and his face quickly turned pale. A thousand-foot-long red blade energy shot out, carrying immense heat waves to meet the azure giant sword.

"Boom!"

The red blade energy was shattered by the azure giant sword on impact, and the azure giant sword instantly appeared before Zhou Yunxiao. His expression tightened, and he swung the red long blade in his hand towards the azure giant sword. With a "crack," the azure giant sword slashed onto the red long blade, causing several small cracks to appear. Zhou Yunxiao's eyes widened. To his incomprehension, the red long blade shattered into pieces, and the azure giant sword continued its strike towards him.

Just then, dazzling red light erupted from Zhou Yunxiao, and a huge spiritual pressure surged from him. A phantom of a man in a red robe slowly rose from behind him. The red-robed man's attire was embroidered with divine dragon patterns, and he wore a red imperial crown. His entire being exuded majesty. The red-robed man raised his right hand and struck the azure giant sword, shattering it. The phantom dimmed and soon vanished.

"An Emperor's Phantom!" Leng Rumei exclaimed. "Crafting such treasures is troublesome, not to mention it consumes a large amount of a cultivator's true essence, requiring a period of recovery. Only particularly outstanding juniors receive such treasures, personally crafted by Nascent Soul cultivators for their self-defense."

"You actually comprehended sword intent! Excellent, excellent, how exhilarating!" Zhou Yunxiao exclaimed. "This trip was not in vain. If not for the protective treasure crafted by my great-grandfather, I would have died. You've won; there's no need for a third move." Zhou Yunxiao's gaze was fixed on Wang Qingshan. He laughed heartily, his eyes filled with fervent admiration.

Hearing this, Wang Qingshan let out a long sigh of relief. To be honest, this strike had exhausted his spiritual power, and he truly couldn't fight anymore. Zhou Yunxiao was certainly a key cultivation target within the royal family of the Great Yan Dynasty. If he had truly killed Zhou Yunxiao, it would definitely implicate his clan, and Wang Qingshan himself would be in trouble.

"You didn't lose, and I didn't win. Let's call it a draw!" Wang Qingshan shook his head and said. "One must know when to advance and when to retreat. In most people's eyes, I've already won, and that's enough. There's no need for the verbal first place." If he had truly accepted the two Core Formation spiritual items, Wang Qingshan would have gained immense prestige, but he would also implicitly offend the Great Yan Dynasty and even become the target of others' envy. As the saying goes, "A tree that stands out in the forest will be destroyed by the wind." It's better to be a bit more humble. He also wanted to use this opportunity to befriend Zhou Yunxiao, as having one more friend is better than one more enemy.

Zhou Yunxiao shook his head and said, "As I said before, not winning is losing; there's no draw. Wang Qingshan, I remember your name. After you advance to the Core Formation stage, you can come find me in the Great Yan Dynasty in the Central Plains. We'll fight again. Next time, I'll definitely defeat you." His tone was strong and forceful, filled with confidence.

"What an excellent 'not winning is losing'!" a voice boomed. "Young man, what is your relationship with the Seven Absolutes Blade Emperor?" With a flash of white light, a somewhat disheveled old man in a white robe suddenly appeared near the arena. No spiritual power could be felt from him.

"The Seven Absolutes Blade Emperor is my master," Zhou Yunxiao replied honestly, "but I am only a registered disciple."

When Leng Rumei saw the old man in white, her beautiful face subtly changed. She quickly walked up to him, bowed respectfully, and said, "Disciple Leng Rumei greets Senior Martial Uncle Ye."

The old man in white nodded, looked at Wang Qingshan, and asked in a deep voice, "You are Wang Qingshan, correct? Do you have a master?"

"To answer senior's question, this junior does not have a master," Wang Qingshan replied.

The old man in white nodded and said kindly, "I am Ye Feng, the Peak Master of Thousand Swords Peak of the Taiyi Immortal Sect. Are you willing to become my disciple?"

As soon as these words fell, the spectators' faces simultaneously showed expressions of envy. To be favored by a Nascent Soul sword cultivator and be personally offered discipleship, what a great honor it was.

Wang Qingshan was somewhat moved, but he thought of something, and a hesitant expression appeared on his face.

"Young friend Wang," Leng Rumei transmitted to him, her eyes full of envy, "Senior Martial Uncle Ye is the foremost sword cultivator of our Taiyi Immortal Sect. Perhaps you haven't heard his name, but you must have heard of the Carefree Sword Venerable. He has only accepted two disciples, and you would be the third. If you become Senior Martial Uncle Ye's disciple, your future will be boundless; forming a Core is just a minor matter." Ye Feng proactively offering discipleship was an incredibly rare opportunity. Countless disciples of the Taiyi Immortal Sect would desperately try to become a disciple of the Carefree Sword Venerable, but the Carefree Sword Venerable had very high requirements for his disciples and had only accepted two so far.

Wang Qingshan pondered for a moment and said, "This matter is of great importance. Could senior please allow this junior to consider it for a night?"

Hearing this, the cultivators present were dumbfounded. Some envious individuals secretly began to curse, "A Nascent Soul cultivator is willing to take you as a disciple, and you still need to consider?"

Ye Feng was slightly startled; it was the first time he had encountered such a situation. He pondered for a moment and then agreed, "Very well, I will allow you to consider it for a night."