Shi Lang flew on his spirit sword with four people. They were headed towards the lightning valley. He found that Hu Shan was a disciple of the First Elder and the eldest of the batch, followed by Liang Ping, the disciple of the Fourth Elder. The disciple of the second Elder was called Xu Guang, and the disciple of the Fifth Elder was Bai Yan.
Hu Shan, Liang Ping, Xu Guang, Bai Yan, and Wen Lengxue were the core disciples of the sword Peak. Shi Lang asked, “I did not see the Third Elder. Where is he?”
Bai Yan replied, “Second Elder has visited an expert with his disciple. His disciple, Senior Sister Maio Jing, contracted flame poison.”
Shi Lang nodded and asked, “So there are six core disciples.”
Bai Yan nodded. The people reached lightning valley while talking about various views they had. The climate of the surroundings suddenly changed too drastically. The sky was dark, covered with clouds and Lightning squirming between them.
Liang Ping said, “It is said that this place is where a lightning treasure is buried. This treasure is the reason why this place is always filled with Lightning. Usually, we are forbidden from entry.”
Shi Lang smiled and asked, “I think these treasures have been bought here by the sect’s experts in the past.”
Hu Shan nodded and said, “Spirit Heart Sect might be in the eastern barrens. However, it is by no means a weak sect. We have a thousand-year-old foundation.”
Shi Lang nodded, and the five people descended at the valley’s entrance. Shi Lang froze and looked around. Suddenly, a voice sounded, “Hmm, good senses.”
The young disciples bowed and said, “We greet the Guardian elder.”
Shi Lang followed their gesture, and the voice asked, “Why have the core disciples come here?”
Hu Shan, the eldest, said, “Elder, Peak Master Lingyao has rewarded Junior Brother Shi Lang a week in the lightning valley. We all came to see if we can learn from him.”
𝒐𝚟𝔩xt.𝗇𝓔t
As he said this, Shi Lang stepped out and bowed slightly. The voice sounded, “Very well, where is your token?”
Liang Ping held a jade token from his space ring in the void. The token vanished in the dark, and the Elder said, “Good. Enter.”
Shi Lang thanked the Elder and entered the valley. This place was akin to some coupling of heaven and earth held together by the lightning strikes. The disciples behind him did not say anything as he walked inside.
As he moved inside the valley, Shi Lang sensed the power of these lightning strikes increasing. The core disciples were watching him from the cliffs on the side when a voice sounded in their heads, “Who is this kid?”
Liang Ping replied, “Elder, he is a new disciple. In three months, he defeated the top seed of the outer court of the sword peak, but he did not even draw his sword.”
Bai Yan echoed, “It is not only that, but he defeated the core disciple, Junior Sister Wen, with a wooden sword. They only fought with sword skills, and he outplayed her.”
The Elder could not believe this, but when he tried to look past Shi Lang, he found that this young man had a lightning spirit energy. But even as an immortal emperor, he could not see through his real capabilities.
When everyone was thinking about what Shi Lang would do, a lightning bolt fell from the sky and hit him in the chest. The people were surprised; they found Shi Lang standing in the same spot the next moment. His body was covered with streaks of Lightning. The people were surprised when they saw this.
…
Wen Lengxue heard the song piece, and gradually her emotions calmed down. She took a deep breath, stood up from the floor of her house, and staggered outside in the garden. With every step she took. She shed a tear. By the time she reached the door threshold, she had calmed down.
She took a deep breath and circulated her spirit energy throughout her body. She walked out of the house with a straight back, and from the pond in the courtyard, she took some water and splashed it on her face.
After she was done cleaning herself. She walked out of the courtyard and headed to find the Peak Master. The song earlier was played by Mei Lingyao, and Wen Lengxue knew this. She came to the courtyard and found the lady sitting in the garden pavilion with her eyes closed and fingers calmly stroking the strings of the guqin in her lap.
She knelt and said, “Disciple Wen Lengxue has come to beg your forgiveness, Master. I have been unfilial and ungrateful to the teachings you bestowed me.”
Mei Lingyao shook her head and said, “You do not have to apologize to me for this. We all stumble down along the way. Some people can stand back again on their own, while some need a kick in the back to realize that they are no longer standing on the Peak.”
Wen Lengxue did not speak, and Mei Lingyao continued, “Tell me, Xiao Xue, what do you wish to do?”
The girl raised her head and said, “I will reforge my way to the sword.”
Mei Lingyao smiled and said, “Then go to the lightning valley and take back that sword I gave you from Shi Lang.”
Wen Lengxue shivered but steeled her resolve and said, “Yes, Master.”
Mei Lingyao watched her disciple stand up and say, “Xiao Xue, he will not give it to you without testing your resolve. Do you understand?”
Wen Lengxue replied, “I will overcome all his tests, Master.”
Mei Lengxue nodded and said, “Go then.”
…
Wen Lengxue flew up to the lightning valley and came to stand opposite the rest of the core disciples. They all noticed her presence but did not say anything. They saw Wen Lengxue bow and say, “Disciple greets Guardian Elder.”
The Guardian asked, “Why have you come here?”
Wen Lengxue stood up and said, “Junior Brother Shi Lang holds my spirit sword. I need to bring it back.”
The guardian elder hummed and asked, “I cannot let you go inside. You have a water element, Xiao Xue, and you cannot endure this.”
Wen Lengxue looked at the terran, facing the Lightning like a stone on the ground. He had no expression and no fluctuation on his face. Surprised, The young girl asked, “What is he doing?”
Bai Yan flew over from the other side, came beside her, and said, “He is absorbing the lightning in the surroundings in his body.”
Wen Lengxue bowed slightly and asked, “Senior Sister, is it not painful for him?”
Bai Yan replied, “Even if it is, what else is the option for him or us? We all need to struggle like this to break past the limits set by the heavens.”
Wen Lengxue sighed and nodded. Bai Yan replied, “I want you to understand that cultivation is difficult. We might break many times and come together many times too. This is how a cultivator refines their will, dao, and physique?”
The young lady sighed and said, “Master told me I will be tested, but I did not expect it to be this.”
She was well aware that her attribute of water was the opposite of Lightning. If she entered the lightning valley, the bolts would target her. This will not allow her to proceed with her task of taking her sword back. More than the lightning bolts, the fear inside her heart held her back.
Wen Lengxue thought for a bit and steeled her resolve. She said, “Elder, please allow me to enter the valley.”
The guardian elder could see through her thoughts and said, “Good, go on.”
The core disciples were shocked. This was not like Wen Lengxue. It seemed like she had gone through many changes and wanted to improve herself. But at this moment, Shi Lang stood upon his feet.
He opened his eyes and looked up at the clouds. He said in a cold voice, “You call this lightning? Are you kidding me?”
The clouds thundered, and Shi Lang said, “Let me show you what real lightning is.”
When the people thought about what he would do, Terran’s body was covered with lightning streaks, and Shi Lang punched at the incoming lightning streaks. The entire valley shook from the impact, and the lightning vanished.
The core disciples were shocked, and Shi Lang said, “If you wish to live in peace, give me what I need. Or.”
The clouds didn’t thunder, but lightning flashed in the void. The bolt seemed normal, but the terran sank into the ground when it hit Shi Lang. The people flinched, and Wen Lengxue froze. They thought Shi Lang was done for, but then a chuckle echoed in the valley. Shi Lang stood up from the ground and said, “Now, that’s what I call a lightning bolt. Come on.”
Liang Ping and Hu Shan exchanged glances and mumbled, “This is madness. Pure madness.”
Wen Lengxue froze as she saw the lightning illuminate the figure standing alone in the valley with a proud smile. She shivered, and in this moment of inspiration, her heart’s last shred of hesitation vanished.