Last year, when Xiang Wanshu met Zhao Layue by the West Ocean, he saw Zhao Layue wielding her sword to kill someone without uttering a single word.
His temperament was very mild, even a bit weak, and he had never thought that he could do such a thing.
The rainbow that illuminated the Cloud Platform was the Thoughtless Sword.
Zhao Layue was the personal disciple of the Immortal Jingyang.
The Immortal Jingyang was the senior master he admired the most.
All these emotions made him feel a sense of awe toward Zhao Layue, and then an admiration grew out of the awe.
He knew that it was impossible for him and Zhao Layue to become Cultivation partners, so he hid his admiration deep in his heart.
Yet, how could he not think about the name of the sword?
Over the last year, he had been thinking that if he could see Zhao Layue again, he might be able to get closer to her … even if it was just to look at her a few more times.
He finally saw Zhao Layue again at the Plum Meeting today, but he didn't expect to see such a scene.
"I'm fine."
His voice was full of disappointment.
…
…
Jing Jiu and Zhao Layue didn't know what the Cultivation practitioners on the Cold Platform were talking about, and they didn't know how many people were as disappointed as Xiang Wanshu.
They picked up the plum flower and inserted it in their hair. The seemingly sweet and affectionate conversation was a natural behavior for them, a common conversation.
Back when they first met in the clouds on the Sword Peak, they had been together a lot, especially in the last four years when they traveled tens of thousands of miles together. They had been together day and night, so they were familiar with each other.
In many people's eyes, this was the love between a man and a woman. But they didn't think so, or in other words, they had never thought about it.
They didn't deny it for the sake of denying it; they really hadn't thought about it. There were too many things to think about when looking at the surroundings and the stars, and when looking back to the eternity. Everyone had too little time in their lives. The human world wasn't worth it, let alone love.
…
…
The chilly wind blew over the Cold Platform along with the clouds. The discussions had gradually died down.
Duke Of He came to the arena and announced the beginning of the Plum Meeting.
The rules were still the same. His Majesty the Divine Emperor would show up in the last Law Battle. The truly powerful figures of the Cultivation world would only appear then. The Cultivation practitioners participating in the Plum Meeting were all aware of this. Normally, they should be quite calm, but many young disciples and even the masters in charge of the Plum Meeting displayed a disappointed expression.
Because Tian Jingren didn't show up.
It was rumored that the immortal man who could decide one's future life and death had come to Zhaoge City, and he would judge the disciples participating in the Plum Meeting. People of course hoped to see him at the Plum Meeting. Even if they couldn't win at the Plum Meeting, it would still be a great fortune for them to get this immortal man's guidance.
…
…
The Plum Meeting was one of the most important meetings in the Cultivation world.
The participants of the Plum Meeting were all young people, not the most important figures in the Cultivation circle, but some of them would definitely reach that level. The history of the past had proven this. Except for the Immortal Jingyang, all the important figures in Chaotian had shown their prowess at the Plum Meeting.
The world-famous meeting had an ordinary beginning. After Prince He's announcement, dozens of young disciples from various sects came to the cold platform in the middle, their clothes fluttering in the wind, noiselessly.
Zither, chess, calligraphy, painting, and Cultivation were all things that could enter the Cultivation path. The most important competition of the Plum Meeting was the Cultivation tournament at the end, and the first one that day was the zither competition.
The zither competition of the Cultivation practitioners was different from that of the musicians in the mortal world. Besides the moving sound of the zither, there were other judging criteria. Not all the participants played the zither. The young practitioners on the cold platform held different musical instruments in their hands. Some played the bamboo flute, some played the pipa, some played the ancient clay pot, and some played the cigar. There was even one who didn't bring any musical instrument, and it seemed that he was going to sing a song.
The zither music rang out like the tinkling of the spring water. As a young woman in white walked onto the stage bravely with the ancient zither in her arms, the Plum Meeting officially began. The music didn't stop after that.
Most of the participants who came onto the stage at the beginning were from the small sects, but their musical instruments were extraordinary. The zither music was moving, and the bamboo flute music was distant. Even the most famous musicians in the Imperial court couldn't compare to them. However, the cold platform at the top remained quiet. Neither Prince He nor the highly achieved monks of the Guocheng Temple made any comments, let alone Zen Master himself.
The Cultivation practitioners of various sects didn't react to the competition either.
It wasn't until a scholar-like disciple from Ōzawa came onto the stage that the crowd became more spirited.
The famous sects were indeed extraordinary. As the scholar put the folding fan back to his waist, the zither music came out from his fingertips, and the energy of heaven and earth responded to it. The mountain wind was still chilly, but it had stopped. A layer of dew had formed on the plum blossoms around the cold platform, glistening under the sunlight, looking like beautiful crystals.
As the scholar from Ōzawa finished playing the zither, the cheers and applause broke out on the cold platforms. Soon after, as the young practitioners of various sects came onto the stage one after another, strange phenomena occurred in heaven and earth. The wind rose and the rain fell along with the music. When Xiang Wanshu, representing the Zhongzhou School, came onto the stage with his bamboo flute, the snowflakes fell down from the sky, and the plum blossoms looked even prouder.
…
…
The cheers became more frequent, and the praises increased; but some people still didn't show any emotion, or even didn't care.
Some of them couldn't help but fix their gazes on the cold platform where the masters and disciples of the Aoyama Sect were.
The masters and disciples of the Aoyama Sect were a typical example of indifference.
Different from other Cultivation sects, the Aoyama Sect didn't care about those so-called methods of cultivating the Dao Heart, which included zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting. In a sense, the Aoyama Sect was an exception in the Cultivation world of Chaotian.
In the memory of the Cultivation world of Chaotian, the Aoyama Sect rarely participated in the first four events of the Plum Meeting. It was only many years ago that the current peak master of Qingrong, Nan Wang, participated in the zither competition once, and unexpectedly won the competition.
Nobody knew why Nan Wang participated in the zither competition. All they knew was that she was a bit angry at the time, walking to the cold platform with a red face. She plucked a leaf from a tree and played a folk song with it. As a result … all the dogs in Zhaoge City started barking cheerfully.
Without a doubt, she won first place in the zither competition.
In the meantime, it was the only time in the history of the Aoyama Sect that someone won first place in the zither competition.
Since then, the Aoyama Sect hadn't had an outstanding performance in the zither competition. Of course, nobody dared mock the disciples of the Aoyama Sect because of this. It was because nobody wanted to face an angry and murderous sword of the Aoyama Sect in the final Cultivation tournament.
…
…
The masters and disciples of the Aoyama Sect didn't care about the zither competition in front of them.
"The winner will be Shui Yue Nunnery anyway."
Nan Wang said.
Back when she was a little girl who had just come out from the barbarian land of the south, she was praised by the Master of the Plum Meeting for her natural naivety when she won the zither competition. She was an important figure of the Aoyama Sect now, and she had a profound temperament, but she still retained some of her old temperament. For instance, this comment was a bit too direct.
Her voice wasn't loud, but the disciples on the cold platform heard it clearly. The female disciples of Qingrong Peak and Yao Songshan all agreed with her comment.
Yet, Zhao Layue didn't understand what she meant, looking at Jing Jiu.
Jing Jiu pulled back his gaze from Nan Wang and said, "Shui Yue Nunnery is the best at the Heaven-Human Connection, and he uses the zither music to enter the Dao. No one can match him in this aspect."
As they were talking, the disciple of Shui Yue Nunnery finally appeared on the stage.
The applause broke out before the zither music started.
One could imagine the anticipation of the participants of the Plum Meeting.
The girl who appeared on the stage was Mo Xi. As the personal disciple of the Master of Shui Yue Nunnery, she won first place easily in the zither competition at the Four-Seas Banquet last year, so her zither skills were extraordinary. Usually, she could win easily, but after listening to her zither music, many people didn't think so. Even she herself didn't have much hope of winning.
The mountain wind ruffled the white veil gently. Xiang Wanshu and the other disciples of the Zhongzhou School stepped aside, and a young girl in white with soft eyes and brows walked out slowly.
"Is she Bai Zao?"
"Bai Zao has actually appeared on the stage. Shui Yue Nunnery might not win this year!"
The discussions broke out on the cold platform.
…
…
(The human world is not worth it. This is what Li Dan said. I have been watching the Dissing Conference recently, and I like it very much. I also like Li Dan very much. This is the most important part of Jing Jiu that I want to write, but this part isn't written in the book. It's not worth it, so let's enjoy ourselves. I kept repeating this phrase when I was drinking in the last two years. So this book is of course a comedy. Let's just play along with Jing Jiu happily.
As for the sentence "Shui Yue Nunnery will win anyway", it came from Song Tudou's joke. Luo Yingshizan and Jin Taihao are leaving for real. See you all tomorrow.) Especially for the martial arts sects and the major clans, they were still very particular about etiquette.
"Oh?"
Han Dong turned around and recognized the middle-aged man.
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