Ascension Day

Xu Ying, Guo Xiaodie, Yuan Weiyang, and the others were listening with rapt attention and were startled. They all exclaimed, "Is the Underworld this cutthroat too?"

"Even more so."

They grabbed the fishing lines and were pulled out of the Cangwu Abyss. Since following Zhou Qiyun into the Underworld, Xu Ying, Yuan Weiyang, and the others hadn't had a chance to rest and were completely exhausted.

Guo Xiaodie arranged rooms for them and told them to get some rest. She then went to find the couple.

The beautiful woman was her mother's younger sister, Li Yingzhu. She was from the reigning Royal Family, the Li Family, which was a great Noble Family in its own right. Although not a princess of the current court, she still held a high status within the Li Family.

The handsome young man was the talented Guo Yue of the Guo Family, Guo Xiaodie's fourth uncle.

The marriage alliance between the Li and Guo families wasn't a one-way street. It wasn't just the Guo Family marrying a daughter to the Emperor to become the empress; the Royal Family also married its women into the Guo Family. As a result, their interests were deeply and inextricably intertwined.

Guo Xiaodie took out the Sword Control Technique, which was some two hundred words long, and handed it to Li Yingzhu. "Aunt," she said, "you're widely-read and knowledgeable, a Swordsmanship genius in both our families. Could you help me look at this Sword Control Technique? I really can't make heads or tails of it."

Li Yingzhu glanced at it nonchalantly, but her eyes immediately widened. She snatched it away and exclaimed, "This Sword Control Technique... where did you get it?"

Guo Xiaodie was taken aback. "I got it in a trade with that lecher... Aunt, is there a problem with this Sword Control Technique?"

"A problem? Of course there's a problem! A huge one!"

Li Yingzhu paced back and forth, so excited her very soul was stirring restlessly inside her. She felt like she could fly out and soar for a hundred thousand li, cheering, before coming back. "In the early days of the dynasty," she said, "Martial Nuo was all the rage. Even the Royal Family cultivated Sword Qi. A single breath of Vast Sword Energy could define half the Golden Tang era! But not even the three founding heroes of our dynasty could decipher the Sword Control Technique! They scoured famous mountains and great rivers, searched through all the ancient classics for who knows how long, before finally finding a Sword Control Technique that was just a single line of a dozen or so words! And it's identical to a passage on this very paper!"

Guo Xiaodie was dumbfounded. Only then did she realize just how precious the item she had traded her Bi Luo Poem for truly was.

"Later, people stopped cultivating Sword Qi precisely because without a Sword Control Technique, it could never reach a higher Realm. It was always considered a cut below the other Nuo Arts."

Li Yingzhu carefully unfolded the paper with the Sword Control Technique, a fiery excitement dancing in her eyes. "If this had been around back then," she said, "Sword Qi would never have gone into decline. This is wonderful, just wonderful..."

Then, she frowned. This Sword Control Technique, some two hundred-odd words long, seemed simple and clear, yet she couldn't understand it at all.

Guo Xiaodie asked cautiously, "Aunt, I traded our Guo Family's Bi Luo Poem for it. Was it a good trade?"

"Worth it? It was more than worth it! Even with the Bi Luo Poem, he won't be able to practice it, so it's just a pile of scrap paper to him. This deal is so good that if our great-great-grandfather heard about it, he'd climb out of his coffin to give you a round of applause!"

Li Yingzhu said excitedly, "It was that lecher who spied on you bathing who gave it to you? I never would have guessed. That kid is more cunning than he looks, having a treasure like this! Why didn't you let him watch a little longer? You might have gotten an even better treasure out of him!"

Guo Xiaodie's eyes widened. "Aunt, what are you saying?" she stammered. "My body is pure and innocent! How could I just let someone look at it freely? I'd die of shame!"

Li Yingzhu quickly put an arm around her shoulder, used two fingers to gently pull down her bodice, and said with a sly grin, "Good little Xiaodie, go and entice him again. Trick him into explaining what these two hundred-some words mean. At worst, you can just take another bath, a really long one this time... By the way, you're not betrothed yet, are you?"

Guo Xiaodie grew alarmed and cried out, "Aunt, what are you trying to do? I already have someone I like!"

"Young Master Yuan?"

Li Yingzhu said nonchalantly, "Young Master Yuan might be handsome, intelligent, and from a decent family, but the Yuan Family is a declining Noble Family, after all. They offer limited benefits to our Li and Guo families. That lecher, however, is different. With this Sword Control Technique of two hundred-some words alone, he can ensure our Li and Guo families stand strong for another hundred years! Xiaodie, how about you two... just get the deed done?"

Guo Xiaodie was shocked and quickly slipped out from under her aunt's arm.

Li Yingzhu laughed. "How many of us in the great Noble Families get to choose who we marry? Even your Uncle Yue and I were set up by our family elders. We met only once before we were married, and aren't we living a happy life now, me leading and him following? That lecher might be a bit dark-skinned, but I can see he has a broad frame. He must have a strong constitution. Some of the women in the city love to keep young men like that!"

Guo Xiaodie fled in a panic, shouting, "Aunt, you're crazy! I'm going to tell Uncle Yue!"

Not long after, Guo Yue came to the study. The couple studied the Sword Control Technique of two hundred-some words together for a long time before Guo Yue sighed and stood up. "I'll go talk some sense into Xiaodie," he said.

Li Yingzhu said, "If that doesn't work, we'll petition the family elders. They can speak with His Majesty and have him issue an imperial edict for the marriage. It won't be up to that little girl to say no."

Guo Yue nodded slightly. "There's one more thing," he said. "I've gathered some intelligence. This lecher, Xu Ying, is originally from Yongzhou Lingling. He's wanted in both the Yin and Yang Realms for killing a Divine Spirit. Both the Yin Court Emperor and Zhou Qiyun place immense value on him and have ordered their subordinates to capture him at any cost, which has caused quite a stir. Ever since Zhou Qiyun got ahold of him, he's kept Xu Ying by his side constantly, taking him everywhere he goes. Rumor has it... he can understand Demon Techniques!"

Li Yingzhu covered her mouth, her eyes widening in a gasp. "Is that true?"

"It's absolutely true. What's more, Zhou Qiyun is in these very mountains at this moment. Xu Ying cannot make a single move that escapes his notice!"

Li Yingzhu composed herself and said decisively, "We must get this done with Xiaodie and him as soon as possible! She might not understand now, but she'll come around in the future. She'll be thanking us for it! By the way, does His Majesty know?"

Guo Yue smiled. "The intelligence I received came directly from His Majesty. I learned of it at the same moment he did."

The husband and wife exchanged a smile.

Li Yingzhu said, "His Majesty is so invested in Xu Ying... it must be because of that Immortal Technique, right?"

The smile on Guo Yue's face gradually froze. Seeing his reaction, Li Yingzhu sighed and dropped the subject.

Xu Ying was sound asleep in the middle of the night when he suddenly felt a warmth under his covers. Reaching out, his hand touched smooth, naked flesh—plump and soft.

The young man woke with a start. Tossing back the covers, he saw black hair fanned out across his pillow. Guo Xiaodie was lying in his bed, stark naked, without a stitch of clothing on!

The girl was fast asleep, utterly oblivious to the situation.

Xu Ying quickly called out, "Lord Zhong! Lord Zhong! Lord Qi! Lord Qi!"

But strangely, Da Zhong and Yuan Qi were nowhere to be seen. Usually, when Xu Ying slept, Da Zhong would hang right above him, never leaving his side, guarding its meal ticket.

But tonight, Da Zhong was gone, and even Yuan Qi had disappeared to who-knows-where.

Seeing they were gone, Xu Ying looked at the naked girl in his bed, and a wicked thought crossed his mind. He lifted a corner of the blanket to take a peek. 'She really does have a mole!' he thought. 'That means it was all real! My Entering the Dao yesterday, my Divine Sense merging with Jiuyi... it all actually happened! Which means Lord Qi saving me with his tail was real too!'

He sat up, put on his clothes, and his eyes flickered as he thought, 'That means the immense terror I felt when I was Entering the Dao... that was real as well!'

He found a spare set of his clothes and dressed the still-sleeping Guo Xiaodie in them piece by piece. Then, he pushed open the window and tossed her out.

"Damn girl," he muttered. "Don't you have your own bed? Why are you taking mine!"

A yelp sounded from outside, followed by Guo Xiaodie's groggy voice, "How did I end up sleeping out here?"

Xu Ying pondered, 'That great terror nearly pulled me into the Cangwu Abyss. That must mean there really is something sinister within the Cangwu Abyss, something that stops people from Entering the Dao, restricts the growth of Daoist Magic and Divine Powers, and poses a mortal threat to anyone who tries! What in the world is down there in the Abyss?'

Just then, a TAPPING sound came from the window.

Xu Ying was surprised. 'Xiaodie hasn't left? If she's still here...'

His heart suddenly began to pound, and his mind ran wild. A feeling he had never known before started to stir within him.

The flustered youth pushed open the window. But standing outside was not Guo Xiaodie. It was a petite young girl dressed in colorful clothes, standing there prettily and smiling at him, her eyes as warm and inviting as a spring day.

"Young Master Xu, do you remember our appointment from yesterday? My injuries have healed. Please, come with me."