Chapter 7 - Battlefield of Righteousness and Evil

Stepping out of the Master’s Pavilion, Leng Yan gazed into the sky, his heart filled with envy as he watched the occasional streaks of rainbow light dart across. Sword flight required reaching the True Essence Realm, and for now, he could only dream about it.

Shaking off his thoughts, he headed toward the Outer Attendant Pavilion. Just a few steps away, Leng Yan felt the unsettling sensation of being watched. He let out a cold chuckle. Since he had detected it, it meant that the person tracking him was not very powerful. He wasn’t worried and continued walking as if nothing was amiss.

The Master’s Pavilion was situated atop the main peak, while the Outer Attendant Pavilion lay on a secondary peak. Between them stretched a deep abyss, bridged only by the Iron Chain Bridge.

As Leng Yan walked across the Iron Chain Bridge, a shout rang out, “You, stop right there!”

Leng Yan heard the command but remained unfazed, continuing forward. The person behind him, seeing that Leng Yan was ignoring him, grew furious and quickened his pace, even emitting several Palm Winds while running.

Leng Yan hadn’t expected such aggression without cause. Angered, he drew his Magical Sword and with a swish, sent out five sword blossoms that scattered the incoming Palm Winds. Yet, Leng Yan did not stop there; he was determined to make his assailant pay.

The sword light flickered like shadows, dazzling the attacker who hadn’t anticipated Leng Yan’s swift response. As sword shadows filled the air, the attacker hastily retreated, drawing his own Magical Sword to parry.

With this retreat, the man had already lost the upper hand. Leng Yan, growing ever more aggressive, heard his opponent shout in desperation, “I am Bi Shu, a man of Chen Hai. If you dare to harm me, you’ll regret it!”

“Oh? What if I kill you? Who would know it was me? Besides, it’s quite an interesting piece of gossip that Chen Hai fancies men!” Leng Yan’s swordplay grew even fiercer. Bi Shu was overwhelmed, and seizing on a momentary flaw, Leng Yan’s sword thrust forward like a dragon emerging from the sea.

Thud!

The sword pierced through Bi Shu’s chest, leaving him in shock. He hadn’t expected Leng Yan to strike to kill, especially since the sect rules prohibited disciples from murdering each other, “You dare kill me! Aren’t you afraid of the sect’s punishment?”

“People who threaten me don’t deserve to live. Besides, who will know it was me who killed you?” Leng Yan’s expression was stern as he withdrew his sword, creating a spray of blood mist, and with a kick, he sent Bi Shu tumbling down from the Iron Chain Bridge into the abyss below.

Summoning a water column with his robe, he washed away the bloodstains. Looking around and seeing no one had witnessed the scene, Leng Yan continued his walk toward the Outer Attendant Pavilion.

…

Leng Yan entered the grand hall of the Outer Attendant Pavilion, where only three Elders were seated cross-legged, with hundreds of jade slips floating before them in white, yellow, and red.

These jade slips contained records of sect tasks and their rewards.

“Elder, I am here to accept a task.”

“Place your hand over the jade slip, and you will feel the information it contains. If you wish to accept the task, grasp the jade slip in your hand, perform the blood recognition¹, and you can then use the teleportation array on the jade slip.”

The white jade slips held ordinary tasks with standard rewards. The yellow slips were for advanced tasks with more substantial rewards. The red slips, however, were for Special Tasks that offered exceptional rewards upon completion but were also perilous, so they required careful consideration. The Elder sitting in the middle, still with eyes slightly closed, spoke softly.

Leng Yan nodded, placed his hand on one of the jade slips, and instantly, information flooded his mind, “Slay ten beings of the Innate Realm. Task rewards: 1000 Contribution Points, 100 primordial spirit elixirs, and 1 sect token.”

For Leng Yan at this moment, this task was quite simple, but the rewards were not very substantial. Moreover, slaying creatures of the Innate Realm would not sufficiently challenge his skills, so he dismissed the ordinary task.

He then moved his hand to a yellow jade slip, and the task information appeared in his mind, “Slay ten beings of the Divine Transformation Realm. Task rewards: 2000 Contribution Points, 200 primordial spirit elixirs, and 2 sect tokens.”

The difficulty of this advanced task matched Leng Yan’s own capabilities, and the rewards were decent. Completing such tasks five times would allow him to apply for promotion to an inner disciple.

“I wonder what the Special Task is? Red represents danger, so it must be quite difficult!” Curious, Leng Yan placed his hand on the red jade slip, “Enter the third sub-level of the battlefield of righteousness and evil, kill ten outer disciples of the demon sect (each set of ten can be accumulated). Task rewards: 5000 Contribution Points, 500 primordial spirit elixirs, 10 sect tokens, and one low-grade spiritual weapon.”

“Wow! These rewards are quite generous! And there’s even a spiritual weapon reward! But what exactly is the battlefield of righteousness and evil? What are the sect tokens used for? What does ‘can be accumulated’ mean? I should ask.” Surprised by the lavish rewards of the red task, which were several times more than those of the yellow tasks, Leng Yan was puzzled and decided to consult the elder, “Grand Elder, what is this battlefield of righteousness and evil? What are the sect tokens for? And what does ‘can be accumulated’ mean?”

The Grand Elder opened his eyes and said, “The battlefield of righteousness and evil is a unique space where disciples of the Righteous and evil sects come to train. The Righteous Sect includes the Five Elements Sect, the weapon refining sect, the supreme dao sect, the water moon cave heavens, and the Infinity Sword Sect, while the evil sect includes the Innate Demon Sect, the Corpse Yin Sect, the demon desire palace, and the Demon Sect.”

“The third sub-level of the battlefield of righteousness and evil is where the outer disciples of various sects fight and kill each other, and the fifth sub-level is where the inner disciples battle.”

“After accepting the task, killing ten disciples from the evil sect completes one task, and killing twenty or thirty counts as two or three completions, rewarding accordingly.”

“The sect tokens can be exchanged with the Grand Elder for items, including flying swords, magical treasures, and other rare and exotic treasures. Do you understand?”

“Ah! So that’s what it means! The battlefield of righteousness and evil is essentially a place for disciples to gain practical experience and where the Righteous and evil sects clash. Since the third sub-level is for outer disciples, the risk isn’t too high, especially since I have a middle-grade treasure tool, escaping shouldn’t be a problem.” Weighing the pros and cons, Leng Yan grabbed the red jade slip, cut his finger, and dropped a drop of blood on it. Instantly, he could feel the teleportation formation on the jade slip, ready to transport him away with just a thought.

Seeing Leng Yan accept the red mission, the Elder looked at him with appreciation and said, “Young man, your courage is commendable! Let me remind you that on the battlefield of righteousness and evil, you need to be wary not only of disciples from the evil sect but also of those from the Righteous Sect. Within that place, Righteous Sect disciples can slaughter each other to take the headcounts recorded in the mission jade slips. Remember! Never let your guard down.”

Leng Yan, having been through many treacherous situations in the secular world, was well aware of people’s evil intentions. He was, however, very grateful for the Elder’s advice. “Thank you, Elder, I will keep that in mind.”

“Haha! Good, you respect the elders, which puts you far ahead of others. Go on!” The Elder laughed and continued his cultivation.

…

Leng Yan felt a stirring in his heart, enveloped himself in white light, and disappeared from his original location. His sight was met with a shroud of black mist, with visibility reduced to just tens of meters. Above in the sky, a blood moon emitted an eerie glow. This was the battlefield of righteousness and evil.

Not daring to be careless, Leng Yan gripped his magical sword tightly, prepared for any sudden situation. At that moment, he heard the sounds of fighting nearby.

“Not bad luck-where there is fighting, there are injuries. Looks like I might get a bargain here!” Leng Yan smiled, hunched his body, and crept forward like a lynx.

After passing through a forest, Leng Yan saw two men fiercely battling in front of him. One man wore a white robe with an embroidered water-colored crescent moon, indicating he was a disciple of the Water Moon Cave Heavens. The other, clad in a black robe, blended almost seamlessly into the dark mist, but the scar on his face was exceptionally noticeable.

“Wearing white robes here is like asking for death! So conspicuous. Look how advantageous it is to wear black robes,” Leng Yan snorted at the obvious attire of the Water Moon Cave Heavens disciple but then felt a pang of realization. “Damn, I’m wearing white too. What a blunder! But no matter, I’ll take this evil sect guy’s clothes after I kill him.”

Hidden behind the trees, Leng Yan carefully observed the surroundings. He wanted to avoid a situation where he would end up like a cicada being preyed upon by a mantis, only to have a bird swoop in for the kill. He wanted to be that bird, not the mantis.

In the meantime, the fight between the two became even more intense. Sword qi² flew back and forth as they clashed, causing the trees around them to splinter and explode.

Footnote:

1. 1. Blood Recognition(滴血认主):“Blood recognition, known as ‘滴血认主’ (dixue renzhu) in Chinese, is a concept often found in Chinese mythology and martial arts stories. It refers to a ritual where a person forms a bond with a magical weapon or artifact by dropping their blood onto it. This act symbolizes the person’s ownership and establishes a mystical connection between the person and the object, often granting the owner special powers or control over the item.”

1. 1. Sword Qi(剑气): In Chinese martial arts literature, ‘Sword Qi’ refers to the powerful energy or aura emitted by a master swordsman through their sword movements or sheer willpower.