Demon Sword Sect's Undercover-Chapter 734 - 733 Golden Bloodline 2

After several sword strikes, Shi Bu collapsed to the ground.

With the help of two young men, he stood up, and all three of them now had a look of awe in their eyes. The people of the Grassland Tribes have this good point: if you defeat them in a way they respect, they won’t hold a grudge but will instead regard you as a reliable friend.

Hou Niao had fought with people in the Soul Realm with his sword for many decades; such a method was practically cheating.

Shi Bu’s dark face flushed red, and although he was eager to make acquaintance, his clumsy speech left him somewhat at a loss for words.

However, Hou Niao was quite personable and knew how to extend an olive branch, "Is there someone called Shi Le among the nobility?"

Shi Bu nodded eagerly. The Golden Bloodline of the Shi family had their own respect for strong swordsmen, "Yes, that is a cousin of the third house to the fifth uncle on my maternal side’s nephew. Do you know him?"

Hou Niao nodded, "I met him briefly decades ago. When you return, you could ask him if he still remembers this friend of his?"

With these words, the relationship between the two sides was instantly bridged. Shi Bu said excitedly, "Brother Shi Le is the strongest swordsman of our Golden Bloodline. If the guest had mentioned this earlier, we would not have been so offensive..."

Hou Niao waved his hand, "To make friends through the sword is the true nature of a swordsman. Where’s the sense in calling on relations right at the start? I am indisposed and would not go to see him myself, but I hope brother Shi can pass on my greetings."

Shi Bu may have seemed calm and steady, but that was just a facade; now that the situation was clear, he immediately instructed his subordinates,

"Go, quickly invite Brother Shi Le, and tell him a friend has come to see him." fгeewёbnoѵel_cσm

Fairy Dong finally breathed a sigh of relief. What seemed an exceedingly difficult task for her was, for this fellow, just a matter of drawing his sword and dancing a few moves, then uttering some harsh words to resolve it. Hence, the key to solving problems is making sure you find the right person.

Being sensible, she knew that it wasn’t appropriate for her to stay at this time, so she nodded in acknowledgment and floated away, leaving time and space for the men.

Indoors, she knew to cling; outdoors, she knew to let go. She grasped this principle early on.

The two youngsters left to find someone, but Shi Bu was unwilling to depart. For someone who loved the sword, meeting an expert was a fortune. Moreover, this brother Hou had a grand character and wasn’t stingy with his skill—a true member of the Sword Dao.

Hou Niao didn’t stand on ceremony and, after a brief exchange of swordsmanship with Shi Bu, using both verbal and physical gestures, he naturally asked,

"Is the entire Northern Territory Grassland like this? Starting to purge foreign powers?"

Shi Bu didn’t hide anything; there was no need to conceal matters from a friend, and after all, this was something all the Daoist Sects on the Continent were doing, and not just his Golden Bloodline,

"Yes! The infiltration and influence from the Daoist Sect, Buddhist Sect, and other powers in the Grassland have never stopped, and it’s been this way for hundreds of years; they are almost in every corner of the Grassland.

Your friend has been quite restrained, focusing only on education and disaster relief for decades without involving Cultivation. We aren’t blind, so the measures we took against her were very mild, mainly persuading her to leave. We’ve never resorted to force, and even the herdsmen from the Kangba left banner wouldn’t agree to that.

But as you know, brother Hou, with the great changes in Jinxiu looming, everyone wants to protect themselves and must watch over their own turf. Otherwise, in times of chaos, we might be swallowed up without even knowing it, and it would be too late for regrets. That’s why things have been more urgent lately."

Hou Niao sighed. This was the fear transmission effect unique to mankind. In reality, if the day comes when the Heaven and Earth Chains are broken, the future may not necessarily be as unbearable as everyone imagines. It could get worse, it could get better, or it might remain neutral.

Alien life crossed the stars just to trouble these natives? Without reaching that Realm, you wouldn’t even qualify to be troubled.

But while that’s sound logic, fear is contagious; what people are more worried about is actually the internal power struggles on the Continent.

There will always be those who take advantage of chaos, those who fish in troubled waters.

No one is in the wrong, what’s important is mutual understanding and moderation,

"I will persuade my friends to gradually rein in their actions in Kangba’s left banner, and I ask for your understanding. After all, the Grassland cannot remain isolated from the world and exist as an independent entity; this wouldn’t benefit you either."

Shi Bu nodded; if it was a matter of friendship, without any stubborn arrogance to contend with, they were actually quite open to negotiation,

"It’s okay, let’s leave it at that; we know very well who’s here to do good and who’s here to preach. We wanted to take precautions, but since it’s a friend whose background we understand, as long as she doesn’t cross the line, we’ll turn a blind eye. The Grassland is too vast; it’s not possible to sweep it clean entirely."

Some things are best left unsaid, as there’s always room for personal consideration beyond the rules.

But Shi Bu’s interest wasn’t in that at all, and it was inevitable that the conversation would turn to swordsmanship within a few sentences.

"Brother Hou, your Swordsmanship is really... has the Shan Sect Quanzhen now changed its style?"

Hou Niao smiled faintly, "I am an extreme exception, because I admire ancient close-quarters Body Sword Skill, so I dedicated myself to its study, but this doesn’t represent a school or a trend."

Shi Bu let out a sigh of relief, feeling slightly embarrassed, "Heh, what I mean is, if all Quanzhen Sword Cultivators had sword skills like yours, then our Golden Bloodline might just..."

Hou Niao spoke frankly, "Brother Shi, please forgive my bluntness. Cultivation is a process of discarding the old and embracing the new, like a river that accepts all tributaries. The worst thing is to be complacent and to have a narrow view of the world.

For us, if we achieve a breakthrough in close-quarters or Body Sword, we will definitely shift in that direction; if one person succeeds, he leads the surrounding brothers, and if a group succeeds, it influences the entire Sect’s trend. This is the process of self-improvement within a Daoist lineage.

So, Brother Shi, don’t think you can rest easy. The Quanzhen might not have changed now, but whether it will change in the future is hard to say."

Shi Bu was taken aback, feeling the pressure rush towards him. Among the Golden Bloodline, the waters were not stagnant; being human, who doesn’t seek progress? Once you venture out and witness more, some things will naturally take root in your heart and linger.

The Golden Bloodline wasn’t completely opposed to change, but they harbored doubts about how to change. Most importantly, in which direction should they change?

Learning the Daoist Sect’s methods was something they were unwilling to do, feeling extreme aversion and having strict ancestral rules against it; yet if they based changes on their current foundation, they couldn’t find a way forward.

He sighed, "With great change imminent, who doesn’t want to strengthen themselves? We Grassland Tribes want to as well, but it’s one thing to want it, another to do it. How can we change without affecting our traditions is a question that has plagued us for hundreds of years.

Over those centuries, we haven’t been sitting ducks; the most outstanding and talented among us have been sent to various parts of the Continent to wander, to come into contact with different lineages, and to find the most suitable direction for integration. Daoist Sect, Buddhist Sect, side Sects, Demon Sect, Body Cultivation - there’s nothing we haven’t touched. Brother Shi Le’s trip to Shan Country was also with this consideration..."

Hou Niao was startled, "And the result is that nothing appealed to you?"

Shi Bu said awkwardly, "It’s not that nothing appealed to us; it’s a fact that the Golden Bloodline is far weaker than Quanzhen, and we’re not so delusional as to inflate our own importance... It’s just that it feels like we’re not on the same path? The Daoist elements integrated into your Shan Sect Quanzhen are just too numerous..."