Chương 428: Unending Peaks (II)

As the darkness swelled back and the colors once again returned to the world, I quickly recognized that something was... off. Well, not off, but I noted strange warmth on my skin and the gentle breeze sweeping against my cheeks.

A second later, I saw that we were on the outside--the array had led us to the flattened summit that stretched a good few miles in every direction (at least), with clouds quite some ways below us and a set of jagged peaks stretching out endlessly in every direction, their silhouettes clawing at the heavens like the talons of some slumbering beasts.

Looking around at their unending numbers, it was as though they converged toward a single, unseen point, almost as though nature itself had been forced into a formation of sorts. Stone ridges hummed a strange resonance: sword-like energies vibrating in the air, their metallic whispers rather unsettling. Qi pulsed across the entire landscape, invisible currents that soon began to press against my skin, as though wanting to bore their way into me.

The entire place almost felt alive, as though they weren't mere mountains made of rock and stone and eons of erosion, but some ancient giants frozen into position. And yet, a mere breath later, the upgraded variant of the old Heart-Stitching Art, Harmonized Heart Sutra, seemed to dispel it all, and I realized I'd nearly fallen victim to a massive formation.

Well, 'fallen victim' is a bit of an exaggerated statement, as the formation seemed to simply invoke awe more so than anything else, but I still fret my mind and body doing something against their will, which immediately soured my taste for this place. Not that I particularly liked it beforehand, what with the certainty of all these people being sent here like lambs to a slaughter, but still. The natural beauty was pulled back in lieu of some weird mechanics that they tried to imbue, and I wasn't having any of it.

The kids snapped out of it, too, as we all took another look of wonder about us. All we could see from here, really, were the peaks themselves--tips of the mountains shaped almost like swords, tearing through the clouds beneath. We didn't get to look for long, though, as a young kid, who seemed twelve or thirteen at most, suddenly came up to us.

"Welcome, Seniors." He wore purely white robes as he bowed.

"Please, allow me to escort you to your abode." He didn't wait for us to answer and spun around immediately, heading away. I shrugged and followed, though the kids seemed a bit peeved. I mean, yeah, I guess arrogance is carved into their bones from when they are very young. Oddly enough, just like with the departure, I couldn't actually see all that many people around us, perhaps a hundred or two, at most.

They, too, seemed to be being greeted by kids, some younger and some slightly older, and being led in random directions. Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. For us, the boy took us east, toward the edge of the flat plateau where a spiraling path lay carved beneath us, steps cast with stone. And, as it turns out, it wasn't a silent tour, either.

"These steps were carved by the great Sword Emerald," the boy spoke up.

"It is said that he started from the very bottom of the mountain and carved one step for each trace of Sword Dao he was able to comprehend. When he comprehended Sword Dao and became an Emperor, he carved the summit of the mountain as the final step, leaving behind a legacy. From the remnant Sword Qi, the world around formed the formation." Oh. A cute legend, actually. How true it is, though, I don't know.

"That's amazing!" Dai Xiu, ever the social butterfly, exclaimed, shuttling to the front and next to the boy who seemed quite startled.

"What about the other mountains around us? Are they the same?"

"S-some, some of them are..."

"Wow! One day, I swear I will find an empty mountain and punch a hole in it! That way, thousands of years from now, people will be talking about me, too!"

"Y-yes..."

"What else? What else?"

"Uhm..." the boy stuttered, his previous confidence vanishing a bit.

"T-they say that, if you study the remnant Sword Qi enough, you might eventually develop a Sword Heart."

"Oh," Dai Xiu exclaimed softly.

"Hm. I don't like swords," she continued.

"Do you have anyone in your Sect who likes punching things hard?"

"... uh, n-no. We're... we're a sword sect."

"Ah, yes. But punching things really hard is way more fun, you know?" she continued.

"Whenever my punch makes something explode, I get super excited."

"I, I think it's more fun to cut things..."

"Ah, you're like the stinky brother Zhao," Dai Xiu said, glancing back at Xi Zhao, whose eyebrows winced for a moment.

"All he cares about is that stupid sword of his. Hey, stinky brother, it looks like we've found your village."

"Xiu'er, that's enough," I said.

"Stop bothering him and come back."

"O-oh. Sorry," she apologized and bowed rather quickly before sprinting back over toward us.

"That's alright..." The boy's words were a whisper, one I'm not sure Dai Xiu even registered as she immediately got into it with Xi Zhao over something or another. We continued downward, the haze of clouds quickly surrounding us and following us for good ten minutes before we broke through. As they faded, I expected a rather grand sight to emerge, one of the sect rooted in nature, with hundreds of pavilions everywhere.... but there was nothing. Just mountains.

Some had trees on them, some were naked, and though they were all massive and majestic, they were still, well, mountains.

"Here," the boy suddenly stopped and pointed at the side of the mountain where, not a moment later, an entrance just... appeared. It was as though there was a vacuum on the other side that sucked up the dirt and stone, leaving a gap behind.

"Please do not leave the abode for the duration of the day. When you hear the bell ring thrice, it will mean that the access to the mountains has been granted. I hope you enjoy your stay." He bowed once again and continued his descent, while the kids ran over to the entryway and walked through, with me going in last. As soon as I crossed it, I caught a fading glimpse of it closing back up before realizing I was now in a rather garish room.

There were tables and chairs every which way, all made out of some kind of white stone, with twilight-colored cushions lining them, threaded with gold. The Qi was rather rich, so much so that even just breathing stirred my slumbering Core slightly. As far as I could tell, there were two floors in total--the communal areas here and the meditating chambers above. Somehow, some way, there was one per person--including even the newcomer, Zhao Yun.... no, wait. There's one extra. Hm?

Who the hell is that weird-looking guy and where the hell did he come from?!