Chapter 332: The Pit and the Mountain

~~~

Meng Yue frowns as she looks at the ring. The tournament officials are still hard at work, removing the last of Xiao Shuang’s ice so the next fight can begin. As her master, she should be proud of the strength of her disciple, and she is.

However…

“What is wrong?” Her sister, Bai Lianshi, asks without looking at her. “Usually, you’d be insufferably smug about your disciple’s victory.”

“It is nothing,” Meng Yue replies. Bai Lianshi hums but says nothing. Three seconds of silence go by before Meng Yue continues speaking. “I am just thinking about Xiao Shuang. That is all. The situation has not been kind to her.”

“It has been a trying time for her,” says Bai Lianshi’s disciple, Bai Wen. “However, if you would allow me this opinion, I believe Little Sister Shuang is strong enough to overcome it, Lady Meng Yue.”

“Senior Sister,” says Fu Lihua, Shao Zhilan’s disciple. “Overcoming it has nothing to do with it. It is about how she feels right now. You cannot deny Little Sister has been…” She laughs nervously, mindful of Meng Yue’s presence. “Tense.”

Shao Zhilan smirks. “I am sure that will sort itself out once she has her husband at her side.”

“Master!”

Disciple and master share a laugh while Bai Wen blushes. However, Bai Lianshi says nothing, and neither does Meng Yue. By every standard, Xiao Shuang is the perfect disciple, and Meng Yue has found great joy in teaching her. Even if she wasn’t that talented, Meng Yue would still love her.

And it is because she loves her that she worries.

Her Dao, the very thing that should be Xiao Shuang’s source of strength…It feels.. frayed..

“Chen Guo of the Infinite Mountain Sect vs. Qing Jin of the Eternal Flame Clan!”

Finally, the ring has been cleared, and the next fight is announced. Both fighters step into the ring.

Meng Yue blinks.

She is not the only one.

~~~

Liu Jin blinks.

The ring shakes as Chen Guo steps on it. He carries with him a shield so large that even two people standing on top of each other would be unable to match its height. It is rectangular in shape and made of some dark metal. Its surface is gnarled like an old tree. If Liu Jin tilts his head, he can almost see a face glaring at him from it.

“The Final Sight,” Liu Jin says.

“You are familiar with it,” Chen Guo notes. His voice has an odd rumbling quality to it. “Good.”

He slams the shield down onto the ring.

Liu Jin braces himself for an attack as the entire ring is left trembling by the weight of the shield, but none comes. Instead, walls of gnarled iron rise around him and Chen Guo, trapping them inside an iron dome that covers the entire ring. Liu Jin can no longer hear or sense the crowd. It is as if the outside world has completely stopped existing.

“This is the Impenetrable Dome of Woe,” Chen Guo explains, making no attempt to attack. “It is a space of absolute isolation, great for defense but also for privacy. Here, no one can see or hear us. We can speak freely.”

Liu Jin blinks once more.

“I was not expecting you to talk this much,” he says.

Chen Guo’s mouth twitches. Liu Jin gets the feeling it is his version of a smile.

“It is not like me. However, duty demands I talk today.” He takes a deep breath, somehow seeming to grow taller as he does. “Emperor Qing Jin of the Storm Dragon Empire, I stand before you with a message from my grandfather.”

Liu Jin’s eyebrows rise in his head.

“Your grandfather? Are you referring to–”

“I speak of the one who stands at the top of the Infinite Mountain Sect. I speak of the Old Man of the Mountain.”

The Old Man of the Mountain.

His name is something that has been lost to the ages, though many believe he was once a member of the Chen Clan, perhaps the first member of it. Of the many cultivators on this side of the Dead Plains, he might be the oldest. Some say he is also the strongest, surpassing even the other Divinities. That Chen Guo feels comfortable enough to call him grandfather says much.

“I am flattered,” Liu Jin says, willing his voice to remain calm. “What is it that he wishes to say to me?”

“The path you are on is perilous. Persist and you will perish. Those on the other side of the Dead Plains already know of your existence. They will hunt you down, destroy your Empire, and make you nothing more than a forgotten memory,” Chen Guo says. “The only way to avoid this is by surrendering to the Infinite Mountain Sect.”

“So you can deliver me to them?”

“So we can protect you from them,” Chen Guo declares. “My grandfather says this: Though the Heavens might turn from him, Old Jiang’s disciple will always find shelter under our mountain.”

He speaks bluntly and simply.

Liu Jin is left reeling.

“Do you agree with this?” Liu Jin asks Chen Guo. “You are offering shelter to a man who will attract foes to your Sect.”

“My grandfather has spoken,” Chen Guo says. “I am not an unfilial grandson.”

Chen Guo’s words sink into the world and become the foundation of a truth that will not be moved even if a thousand years pass. To doubt them in any way would be an unthinkable insult.

The Infinite Mountain Sect’s support is not something Liu Jin was counting on when he decided on this plan. Old Jiang’s history with them was not in any of the memory jades he witnessed, but it is not outlandish to assume he encountered them in the past.

However, that’s just the thing. It is not information contained within his master’s jades.

“I see,” Liu Jin says. “However, kind as your offer is, I am afraid I cannot accept it.”

“I ask that you reconsider,” Chen Guo says immediately.

“I decline still.”

Chen Guo does not reply this time. His brown eyes remain fixed on Liu Jin as if trying to change his mind through the sheer weight of his stare. Weaker men might have succumbed, but Liu Jin’s will does not bend.

“Very well,” Chen Guo says, resigned. His eyes turn grey like stone. “I will have to use force.”

Chen Guo lifts his shield. The moment he does, the iron dome comes down, and all the noise from the outside world rushes back. The crowd’s boos at being denied the opportunity to watch the fight immediately turn to cheers that make the whole arena vibrate with their energy.

Chen Guo’s Qi blows it all away.

Earth Realm, Level Nine.

Without a doubt, he is the strongest opponent Liu Jin has faced in this tournament. The greatest jewel produced by the Infinite Mountain Sect.

Chen Guo punches, and the attack fills the entire space in front of Liu Jin. There is no room for him to dodge. All he can do is endure the blow, his aura rising and growing in density as he does. Almost immediately, the second blow comes, leaving Liu Jin no doubt as to how Chen Guo intends to approach this fight.

Power against power.

Purple lightning sparks as Liu Jin hurls it to meet Chen Guo’s incoming fist. It roars as it slams into the wave of pure force. A second punch is countered in the same way, as is the third. However, while that happens, a thick purple mist begins scattering throughout the ring, filling every corner of it and rising to the ceiling.

“Poison,” Chen Guo says, looking at the mist. There is no judgment in his voice. He is neither angry at the tactic nor worried about it. And really, why should he feel either?

None of it has gotten close to him.

Though most of the ring is full of poisonous mist, the area around Chen Guo is nothing but clean air. It is as if there were invisible walls separating him from the rest of the world. Liu Jin can only smile. He was not expecting the poison to do much, but he was also not expecting it to be kept at bay so easily.

[Art of the Roaming Thief]

Liu Jin banishes, hiding amid the poisonous mist. He carefully examines Chen Guo’s Qi, probing it for any weakness.

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Chen Guo stomps.

Once again, the impact of his actions does not match the size of his body. A gigantic weight presses against every inch of the ring. Liu Jin grits his teeth as he manifests a snake construct around his body to defend himself. Unlike others in the tournament, Chen Guo’s Dao is fully integrated into his fighting style. As Chen Guo prepares to stomp the ground once more, Liu Jin strikes.

A white poisonous snake is unleashed from Liu Jin’s palm. Though the impact of Chen Guo’s attack falls on Liu Jin, the Qi construct continues making its way through the air. Chen Guo’s eyes widen almost imperceptibly as the snake trespasses his territory with blinding speed.

Final Sight comes up.

The gnarled surface of the shield receives the technique and endures it without trouble. Even so, Chen Guo looks at Liu Jin with new wariness.

“A mountain is not a monolith,” Liu Jin says. His robes are a bit damaged by Chen Guo’s attack, but his body is unharmed. “Even a snake will find its way through if given time.”

“Perhaps,” Chen Guo says. He starts walking. “However, a mountain’s strength does not lie in its hardness.”

In the blink of an eye, he’s right in front of him.

“A mountain covers the land as far as the eye can see!” Chen Guo finishes, holding the shield in front of him and bringing it against Liu Jin.

[White Venom Fist]

[Black Charging Meteor]

The ring explodes. The force of the two techniques colliding shatters it into thousands of pieces and sends them flying against the barrier. Each small impact rings like a cannonball, making several members of the audience fall out of their seats and clearing out every cloud in the sky. Even the city below them trembles under their might.

“The mountain endures throughout the ages,” Chen Guo continues. A wave of his shield dismisses the dust and the poisonous mist. There is not a single wound in his body. “Through storms, quakes, and fire, it shall not falter.”

“Interesting,” Liu Jin says. He raises his hand and examines it. There is some minor damage there, but it is gone in the blink of an eye. “However, are you really in any position to call yourself a mountain? You are not the one who has stood tall throughout the ages. In the Infinite Mountain Sect, there is only one mountain, and it is not you.”