Volcanic Age

It's just as I thought. Zhou Xuchuan thought as he observed Liu Zhengmu's movements.

His master was still executing the Five Ways Plum Blossom Art slowly. However, it was different from when he was executing the Fourteen Forms of the Plum Blossom Sword.

While displaying the sword art, he was considerate towards his disciple, allowing him to observe closely. That was why he exaggerated some movements and angled himself so that he could be seen more clearly.

Just executing it slowly was challenging enough yet, he was being considerate so that his disciple could see it properly.

However, such considerate movements stopped when he started executing the third form of the Five Ways Plum Blossom Sword Art. Now, Zhou Xuchuan often struggled to see some of the postures unless he shifted to another position.

It wasn't that Liu Zhengmu was exhausted or couldn't be bothered to. On the contrary, he became so immersed in executing the Five Ways Plum Blossom Sword Art, that he momentarily forgot about the presence of his disciple.

My actions change the future. I never imagined that both the first and second matters would be related to my master.

Just now, Zhou Xuchuan had discovered something strange when Liu Zhengmu displayed the Fourteen Forms of the Plum Blossom Sword, in other words, his full strength.

There's an imbalance between the five elements. There's a heavy bias towards water qi because of his consumption of the Water Spiritual Fruit.

Initially, it appeared that the energy from the Water Spiritual Fruit only stopped the leak of his innate true qi. However, upon closer inspection just now, Zhou Xuchuan realized that wasn't the sole effect. There were still some minute remnants left.

He didn't realize until Liu Zhengmu displayed the Fourteen Forms of the Plum Blossom Sword Art. Liu Zhengmu used all of his power to display even sword qi, and in it, he felt yin qi that stemmed from water qi.

That was why he specifically asked his master to perform the Five Ways Plum Blossom Sword Art slowly.

The Five Ways Plum Blossom Sword Art, as its name implied, was a martial art that contained the mysteries of the cycle of the five elements. It was the best in fixing the imbalance of the five elements.

The reason he asked his master to perform it slowly was to let him focus. There was a chance he might miss it because of the subtle difference.

I didn't know a single spiritual medicine could have such dramatic effects…

Not only did it fix his weak constitution, which he thought was a disease, but it also became a clue to advancing to a higher realm of cultivation.

While he was thinking, Liu Zhengmu completely executed the Five Ways Plum Blossom Sword Art. Immediately after, he began circulating his qi.

It was to absorb the epiphany he had just gained and advance in cultivation.

Zhou Xuchuan stood guard and held his breath so that he did not disturb Liu Zhengmu.

The imbalance between the five elements is nothing more than a trigger.

The residual water qi from the Water Spiritual Fruit didn't even amount to much. He might have called it an "imbalance," but it wasn't serious. It was only a minor adjustment, and it resulted in more stability and a tiny increase in internal qi.

Then, what was Liu Zhengmu's true epiphany?

'It's rest.'

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Despite his earnest and hardworking nature, Liu Zhengmu had a tendency to be excessive. Because of his upright nature, he was sometimes called stubborn. This hadn't changed even after he failed to join the ranks of the Plum Blossom Swordsmen. He lived his life without rest, continually pushing himself.

Even some of his apprentice-brothers were astonished by his relentless efforts; some even viewed it as an obsession. And it didn't work even if someone told him about it.

His only goal was to do his best, and he was always tense ever since he joined Mount Hua.

A clear example of this was the improvement exercise. Liu Zhengmu pushed himself way too hard.

Aah. Sometimes, I need to let things go.

The Five Ways was circulation, in other words, the flow of nature. Liu Zhengmu thought about the Five Ways once again as he readjusted the imbalance between the five elements. Reflecting on his actions, he finally understood.

As he grasped the essence of circulation, he realized that sometimes, he just needed to let things flow on their own accord.

Water qi, Five Ways, circulation. He understood and realized the laws behind these three things.

Then, he succeeded in surpassing the barrier of the Peak Realm.

A long time passed before he opened his eyes again.

Both the aura emitted by him and the look in his eyes had changed. There was a sense of ease about him that wasn't there before. The soft and relaxing smile of before had not changed, yet now, coupled with his relaxed demeanor, he somewhat looked like a wise sage.

"It is not me who teaches you, but the other way round. This is all thanks to you."

The first words he said were filled with affection.

Hearing that, Zhou Xuchuan shouted emotionally.

"Congratulations, Master!"

He rejoiced as though this matter concerned himself. He had always been a burden to his master before his regression. He was also deeply regretful that he wasn't able to be with his master during his last moments.

He was always uneasy because he felt like he was indebted to his master… but he could pay a little bit of it back like this. He was happy about it.

Zhou Xuchuan felt grateful for his new life once again.

***

"Oho, The Gentle Smiling Swordsman has reached the Absolute Realm?"

The news that Liu Zhengmu had advanced to the Absolute Realm spread throughout the whole sect in less than a day.

"That is very good news!"

Mount Hua, being one of the ten major organizations, had a lot of experts; it was a major sect after all. However, experts of that level were uncommon. An expert of the Absolute Realm received significant recognition as a major power even in a major sect.

Now Liu Zhengmu had reached that level, so it was not surprising that he received attention. The apprentice-brothers that had been on close terms with Liu Zhengmu visited him and congratulated him.

That was the first time Zhou Xuchuan had seen so many visitors at his residence in both lives.

"Congratulations."

"I always believed that a Great Hero like the Gentle Smiling Swordsman would be able to do it."

"This is not much, but I hope you can accept it."

Liu Zhengmu didn't have many acquaintances. The ones he considered close at most amounted to five people. However, the recent visitors easily surpassed a hundred, with most seeking connections.

Although this was obvious, sect members weren't the only people living in Mount Hua. Some of the children of well-off houses who stayed in the sect as outer sect disciples brought some servants and escorts with them.

Apart from that, there were people who came to make requests, merchants, and even cultivators seeking guidance.

Among those people, quite a number of them, no, almost all of them wanted to create connections with the main disciples of Mount Hua.

This wasn't an ordinary sect, but the Mount Hua of the ten major organizations. If they could build a relationship with a sect member, it would be more reassuring than any number of swords.

As a cultivator of a powerless small sect, they would often get bullied by some organizations of the evil faction, which could easily be prevented if they had connections with a main sect disciple of Mount Hua.

However, some used Mount Hua's influence to do bad things.

Sheesh, Master is so…

Zhou Xuchuan inwardly sighed. He was looking at his master's back as he welcomed each person one by one. He had learned how to rest, but his upright nature had not changed.

'No one would've visited if he said he was tired, especially since he's just advanced to a new realm…'

Zhou Xuchuan was worried, yet Liu Zhengmu greeted each visitor with his usual warm smile, assuring everyone that he was fine.

Thankfully, his master wasn't a gullible man and didn't receive any favors or get taken advantage of. He also accepted the barrage of gifts with moderation.

*

At the summit of Lotus Peak, the Upper Palace.

This was one of the few buildings that was built during the founding of the sect and still remained to this day. Throughout its long history, its appearance had not changed.

Not only was it designed by some of the greatest architects at the time, a lot of money, effort and time was invested into maintaining its structure over the course of time. This place was just that important.

The scenery of Mount Hua when viewed from the Upper Palace, was renowned for being beautiful and magnificent enough to charm anyone. Its reputation was so great that many aficionados dreamed of visiting this place at least once in their lifetime.

Not only was the scenery beautiful, but the Upper Palace itself was also a marvel, which was somewhat natural considering the astronomical sum of money involved during the building process.

Not to mention the perfectly designed structure, its aesthetic beauty couldn't be described in words.

Although it was purposely built to be inferior to the imperial palace because the authority of the sect didn't match up at the time, it was still one of the most beautiful buildings in all of the Central Plains.

"I knew that boy Liu Zhengmu would be able to do it."

Inside the Upper Palace, an elderly man with a strikingly white beard let out a pleasant chuckle from his position at the head seat.

Under the heavens, there exist one hundred experts. They were called the "Hundred Experts Under Heaven" and were mostly made up of Absolute Realm experts, and some who had reached the Harmony Realm.

Did that mean these hundred experts were at the peak of the martial world?

Nay.

Beyond the Harmony Realm, there were those that surpassed the limits of humanity and garnered both admiration and fear.

The Ten Empyrean Overlords.

The Hundred Experts Under Heaven were as their name implied, "under heaven." There was always a sky above. Above the sky were the Ten Empyrean Overlords.

The elderly man in the head seat was none other than one of these overlords—Exalted Sword Immortal You Riwen, the sect master of Mount Hua.

"If not for his weak constitution, he would have joined the Plum Blossom Swordsmen. It's truly a pity."

Surrounding You Riwen in the head seat were middle-aged men approaching their later years. They were the ones supporting the sect masters, and had authority second only to the sect master, the Five High Elders.

"Hm, from what I hear, his weak constitution was resolved when he reached the Absolute Realm…" one of the elders commented.

"Oho."

You Riwen showed interest. Liu Zhengmu was a Peak Realm expert before, but wasn't considered as a proper fighting power of the sect because of his weak constitution.

It wasn't bad. He had a decent personality, was a very earnest hard worker, and had somewhat of a decent talent.

However, because of that weak constitution, he lacked endurance and couldn't take on any sect missions.

"Hm, then why don't we evaluate him properly once?"

From the perspective of the sect, letting a talented man like Liu Zhengmu stay in the sect was a waste.

"That's a good idea."

The future had changed once again.

After that, Liu Zhengmu was often brought up as a topic during the meetings in the Upper Palace. These meetings, held by the sect master and the Five High Elders, were the most prestigious meeting within Mount Hua. The topic of what to do with an Absolute Realm expert like Liu Zhengmu was definitely worthy to be talked about in the meeting.

Half a month passed and remarkably, Liu Zhengmu had not coughed once during this period. Seeing this, the upper management of Mount Hua concluded that Liu Zhengmu's weak constitution was resolved and assigned him a mission.

In other words, he was setting out into the world.

*

"Whoa."

Something that truly didn't happen had happened.

In his previous life, Zhou Xuchuan had never seen his master set out for the world aside from friendly gatherings. Naturally, this news surprised him.

"Ugh."

And, honestly speaking, he was uneasy.

If Liu Zhengmu were to set out into the world, what happened afterward would be uncertain. Even Zhou Xuchuan, who knew events that happened decades in the future, didn't know everything.

It was especially true for a case like this. This future was not something he had experienced before.