Chapter 268: I Have Numerous Mansions with Thousands of Hectares of Fertile Land
Translator: Subudai11 Editor: Chrissy
Upper-level intervention?
Wang Lu immediately turned silent upon hearing the explanation of Sword Demon.
It was really an unexpected explanation.
The words of Sword Demon, of course, could not be completely believed. However, since things have come this far, in addition to seriously listening, there was no other better choice. Wang Lu gradually extinguished his fighting spirit and quietly accepted the world’s recovery.
At present, the dark clouds have broken apart and were replaced with a bright open sky. All the traces previously left by Sword Demon have completely vanished. As for whether it was just temporary or permanent, that was temporarily unknown. At the foothill of a mountain, sword spirit Autumn Beam was lying peacefully on a clear lake. It seemed like she has overexerted herself, but there was no serious damage.
Wang Lu was inwardly shaken. The feeling of escaping from narrow death was unexpectedly really good, but the ups and downs were not all pleasant sensations. Although he recovered some of his lost ground in the last dangerous comeback move, he preferred to crush the opponent compared to that dangerous comeback.
Letting go of the trembling feeling, Wang Lu decided to listen to Sword Demon’s argument.
"Where to begin?" After a moment of hesitation, Sword Demon shook his head in a self-deprecating manner. "Because I didn’t even think that you could pass, that’s why I didn’t prepare any explanation. Let me think about how to say it best."
Then, Sword Demon’s face turned serious and said with a sinking voice, "Actually, previously, you have raised a very good question. Unfortunately, I didn’t have the time to explain it because of the interruption of the Sword God. At that time, you asked me why did I have to go to so much trouble to resurrect myself. Actually, when I used the Fengshui line in the Bai Li Region to challenge the four in nine divine tribulations, I was already ready to die. At that time. I’ve fully spent twenty years of preparation, so everything has been properly prepared. I even prepared my funeral arrangement. When I went to the location, I even thought that if I didn’t die in that fight, I would feel sorry for my twenty years of hard effort. Resurrection after the death was completely not my plan."
Wang Lu said, "Didn’t you say you died with injustice being unredressed because just before you died, you were sullied by the power of the will of the people?"
Sword Demon said, "Yes, the contamination before death was completely beyond my expectation. In my twenty years of preparation, I never thought about this possible outcome, so I never made the proper arrangement. At that time, I was really at a loss."
"Actually, it’s not that difficult to deduce this. In this sword tomb, there are yin and yang divisions and also good fortune resurrection, so how could a dying person be able to arrange all of those?"
Upon hearing this, Wang Lu finally understood. "So, you asked for other people’s help? Strange, for someone with your temperament who even dared to single-handedly face the heaven's wrath, how could you be willing to bow to others when death is imminent?"
Sword Demon coldly said, "What a joke. How could I, Zhong Shengming ever lower myself in front of others? It was those people who found me and offered me a deal."
"Oh? People that are qualified to make a deal with you are definitely not ordinary people, right?"
"Humph, if a group of incompetent people wants to take advantage of me, even in my dying state, I could still frighten them out of their wits. It actually was a bunch of earth immortals who offered me a deal."
"Earth immortals? What is that?"
Sword Demon scoffed. "A bunch of ungrateful ignorants. I’ll get to the specifics about that later. After they found me, they promised to help me solve the contamination problem, but as the price, I would do them a favor."
"Was it to guard the tomb?"
"Close. They want me to choose an inheritor for them."
"An inheritor? To inherit what? What conditions does it need to meet?"
Sword Demon said, "I don’t remember the specific conditions anymore. In fact, they never said it in details. After all, as the gatekeeper, I have to undergo the life and death transformation, and in fragments of primordial spirit, some of my memory would inevitably vanish. Therefore, at that time, they only established a very basic condition. Once it is satisfied, the successor then becomes official. As long as I can select this person, I will obtain the complete freedom."
After a pause, Sword Demon explained further, "In order to prevent me from reneging my commitment, constraints were constructed within this sword tomb. In the absence of a suitable successor, this place is completely sealed, people can only get in but can’t get out."
Wang Lu nodded. "And then?"
"And then?" Sword Demon sneered. "And then everything turned into a mess. According to their plan, I should’ve woken up a few decades or several hundred years at most, and there would still be enough material in the sword tomb for me to eliminate Sword God. Once my primordial spirit is reunited, I just have to do my best to find a successor to satisfy the condition and everyone would be happy. But in fact, I woke up more than ten thousand years later. The materials that I ought to use have also vanished into thin air. If not for you guys, these uninvited guests, heh…"
Wang Lu asked, "Since our existence is highly valued, why did the two of you still want to possess us?"
Sword Demon said, "Isn’t this obvious? Suppose you were me and found out that when you woke up, all the original plan has become a mess, can you expect the next step would run as it should be? What if when I find the successor for them, the tomb wouldn’t let us out? Therefore, rather than putting my hope on the group of incompetent immortals’ incompetent arrangement, I’d rather rely on myself. However, in my primordial spirit state, it’s not easy to break through an immortal-level restriction…"
Wang Lu didn’t speak for a while. "And my Senior Sister and I happened to give you that opportunity."
"Correct. Although the cultivation base of the two of you is still shallow, both Void Spirit Root and Sword Spirit Root are peerless level spirit roots. Even if this place is isolated from the main path of immortal cultivation, I already have my own path in my primordial spirit. Once I complete the integration with your body, in three years, I will be able to break the restriction. Although immortal world is awe-inspiring, I don’t care too much about it."
Wang Lu asked, "Then what about now?"
"Now?" Sword Demon smiled. "Isn’t the situation very obvious? Your luck is indeed good because you’ve met the condition for the successor, and according to the restriction put in place, I can’t get rid of the qualified successor...Therefore, you’re lucky."
Wang Lu asked, "What are the criteria for the successor?"
"Very simple, if I find that person pleasing to my eyes, then that’s it," Sword Demon plainly said it.
"..." Wang Lu was silent for a very long time, yet he still couldn’t find an appropriate exclamation to describe his feeling—because there were too many exclamations!
First of all, he just needs to find someone that is pleasing to his eyes? What kind of criteria is that? Have those group of immortals that made a deal with him lost their minds?
Secondly, since now he suddenly finds me pleasing to his eyes, then wouldn’t it mean that previously he found me not pleasing to his eyes? Yet when we first met, he assumed the attitude of a chivalrous hero and imparted me his method—of course, now it seems like he had a bad intention in imparting me the Primal Chaos Heaven Splitting Sword.
Most importantly, I suddenly qualify the condition, wouldn’t it mean that I suddenly look pleasing to your eyes? Could forcing someone to a dead end, like what I did with you, easily change a person’s aesthetic? Isn’t that a cowardly act?
Then, now that I’m qualified, it means that you find me pleasing to your eyes, but right now, you’re sneering and shaking your head like we’re sworn enemies—where did the look of pleasing to your eyes go?
Or could it be that the Sword Demon of Bai Li is essentially a tsundere?
Seeing that Wang Lu has fallen into silence, Sword Demon correctly guessed what he was thinking.
"In my case, your Void Spirit Root, your Non-Phase Method, and your dishonest ideas are no doubt interesting. But that’s about it. I have been cultivating for thousands of years, so I’ve seen a lot of things."
Speaking to this, Sword Demon paused for a moment. "However, you can actually push me to a dead end. In my entire life, I, Zhong Shengming, have always been unruly, however, I always respected the strong. Since you can achieve this step, you managed to make me recognize you… regardless whether I want it or not, rules are rules. Not the rules that others set for me, but the principles of the sword cultivation that I have always adhered for thousands of years."
"As for the fear of death." Sword Demon smiled, but didn’t give any argument.
"Let’s get back to the main topic. Since you have now become the successor, you have the right to know the truth about this tomb, which is also the thing that you will inherit."
Wang Lu nodded in anticipation.
According to Sword Demon, a group of earth immortals came looking for him before he died. Although he had never heard about this earth immortal, if he had to interpret the term literally, since it has the word ‘immortal’ in it, they must not be nobodies. They ought to be on the level below true immortal and above the world of mortals? Not to mention Sword Demon also admitted that he only respected power, then the group that he took seriously must have been a powerful group. After all, they set up the yin and yang division and other powerful restrictions.
However, what exactly was the thing left behind by those people? How much value does it have? After all, even Zhong Shengming was just the caretaker of the inheritance!
"I have not seen the content of the inheritance, but when you look at this, you will understand everything… However, before that, I have to confirm something with you first."
The expression of Sword Demon was unusually serious. That sharp vision even made Wang Lu suspect that at any time, they might have a fall out and he would die in pain.
Of course, Sword Demon did not do that. Instead, he raised a question, "Are you sure you want to know all this? Now you still have the chance to give up—I won't suddenly see you not pleasing to my eyes."
Wang Lu took his time to think about it, so Sword Demon continued, "With your ability, you ought to be able to see the problem here: what exactly is an earth immortal? They have the power that can make me recognize them, but why you never knew about their existence? Why would they leave a rich inheritance? Could it be that they simply have the good intention to help the later generation?"
With that, Sword Demon pondered for a moment and then continued, "There are things that I can’t say directly, but I want you to seriously think about it. Such as this question: in the past, the devils of Bai Li region wreaked havoc, trying to steal the horizon and thus being quelled by the firmament of the ninth heaven. This cause the path to ascension for cultivators nearly severed. People said that the prestige of the heaven must not be offended, but, how could the firmament hold such a grudge?"
"You mean…?"
Wang Lu was inwardly frightened, however, before he could ask questions to clarify this, Sword Demon has already bypassed this topic.
"So, are you sure you want to know all this?"
Wang Lu answered completely without hesitation, "Of course!"
"Good." Sword Demon smiled once again, but it wasn’t clear if it was a gratified or ridiculing smile. He waved his hand and sent out a brilliant projection in Wang Lu’s internal world.
The projection was a map. Moreover, it was a very sophisticated three-dimensional map. It seemed like a multilayered underground building… For sure, it should be the map of this sword tomb.
"This is the sword tomb where we’re at." After making sure of Wang Lu’s conjecture, Sword Demon waved his hand again.
The next moment, a hundredfold of light shone out. Before Wang Lu’s eyes appeared a network.
A large and spectacular network, which almost blotted out the sky and nearly covered his field of vision. However, the three-dimensional map of the sword tomb that he had previously seen was just but a point node in that network.
There were countless other similar sword tombs in the form of a node in that network—as numerous as the stars.
"This is your inheritance," Sword Demon lightly said and then looked at Wang Lu’s reaction with interest. "Of course, the premise is if you can find the key to open it."