Many years later, whenever the Human Race looked back on the magnificent war in the Central Spirit Region, they would set the beginning of the Human Race's counterattack at the moment when the Sword Sect's old sect master, Xie Qingyun, and the new young sect master, Lu Qingshan, led the Sword Sect's sword cultivators to the west and arrived at the Central Spirit Region.
However, in reality, the beginning of the Human Race's counterattack had nothing to do with the Sword Sect, nor did it come from the Candle Dragon Palace's eastern expedition. It did not even come from the Jade Forest Guards and the Chang 'an Guards that Xia Hou had stubbornly assigned. Instead, it came from an extremely ordinary sword cultivator.
.....
At the northwestern border of the Central Spirit Region, there was a wilderness that spanned more than five thousand kilometers.
At the edge of this wilderness area, there was a small border city.
This was a lonely border city. In the wilderness that spanned more than five thousand kilometers, there was only one human city.
Other than that, it was not much different from the other cities in the Da Xia Kingdom.
Within the small city, there was a clear river that flowed through it.
It was also because of the existence of this river that this border city was built.
Small bridges made of stone or wood floated above the river.
The riverbank was filled with banana trees. Behind the banana trees were wine shops, and the lingering fragrance of wine drifted out from there.
In front of the banana trees was a bustling street. There were pedestrians everywhere, and it was bustling with activity.
As a small border city, there were not many cultivators here, and they were not very strong.
In the bungalow area to the west of the small city, there was an extremely large bungalow.
At this moment, the sound of sharp weapons slicing through the air could be heard from the courtyard of the bungalow.
At the entrance of the courtyard, there was a plaque that read: Flying Swallow Sword Li.
This was a sword hall opened by a sword cultivator called Li Si.
No one knew Li Si's background. They only knew that twenty years ago, Li Si quietly entered the small city, bought a large courtyard, and then opened a sword hall.
The unique characteristic of the small city was that the various forces and classes in the city had long been fixed. If one wanted to open the door and do business here, they had to get the consent of those people and follow their rules.
Even if it was just a sword hall.
Li Si opened a sword hall in the city without permission, and it soon attracted trouble.
Someone came looking for him.
No one knew what happened.
They only knew that once the door was closed, the door would open again an hour later, and the cultivator who came looking for trouble would leave with an ugly expression on his face.
After that, the "Flying Swallow Sword Li" took root in the small city and quickly grew, becoming the largest sword school in the small city.
The reason was very simple. The Sword Pavilion only took a symbolic spirit stone as a 'tuition fee', and it taught everyone regardless of background. No matter if you were an independent cultivator, a disciple of a sect, or a cultivator of a clan, Li Si was willing to teach you everything he knew.
The only threshold was a couplet on both sides of the door.
"If you want to bully the weak, go elsewhere. If you are greedy and afraid of death, don't enter Si Men."
But talk was talk. Who didn't know how to make empty promises?
Therefore, this threshold was almost non-existent.
.....
In the courtyard, Li Si sat on an armchair, leisurely drinking wine.
Below, there were dozens of young sword cultivators doing their daily practice.
The Flying Swallow Sword was famous for its speed. If one wanted to be fast and steady, they would need to practice continuously.
Li Si narrowed his eyes and looked at the disciples below.
His eyes were very small, but it did not affect his sharp eyes. He could always point out the disciples' mistakes in time and accurately.
Like many sword cultivators, Li Si was extremely good at killing when he was young, and he took many lives.
Later, he also entered Longcheng Pass and killed Demons and Devil Cultivators.
His Flying Swallow Sword had been honed through battles with demonic cultivators.
Later, when he reached the age, his cultivation could no longer improve. His Qi and blood gradually dried up, and his energy and combat strength were not as good as before. So he retired from Longcheng Pass and did not waste any extra resources.
After retiring from the battlefield, Li Si was confused for a while. He did not know where to go or what to do.
Li Si was used to the tense and unrestrained fighting life and death in an instant. His life suddenly became dull, which indeed made him feel at a loss.
He began to miss the first half of his life, the fresh and exciting days in Longcheng Pass, and the mountains and rivers when he was young.
Then, Li Si remembered practicing swordsmanship by the river. He remembered the girl named Feiyan who liked to wear skirts. He remembered that the girl always liked to watch him practice swordsmanship.
Finally, when he was about to leave home to pursue swordsmanship, the girl leaned against the railing of the ferry, looked at him and said,
"Brother Si, I'll wait for you here. When you come back, we'll find a small town to live in seclusion, buy a big house, and then have many children. You can teach the children how to practice swordsmanship …"
However, he left for a hundred years.
When he looked back, he was already a hundred years old.
The beauty of the past had already become a pile of yellow soil.
So, Li Si knew what he was going to do.
He found a small border town, opened a sword hall named after a woman, and opened the door of the sword hall.
Li Si, whose mind was more and more indifferent, took a sip of the wine in his hand and got up to announce that today was over.
Just as he got up, he noticed something.
He seemed to have sensed something, and he frowned as he looked up.
Li Si saw the flying boats. There were as many as swallows, and there were thousands of them, sweeping over like a dark cloud.
"What's going on?!"
He was shocked at first, and then his heart skipped a beat. He sensed that something was wrong.
"Master Li, Master Li." At this moment, a loud call came from outside the door.
The next moment, an eight-foot-tall cultivator with a stocky build walked in quickly.
It was the guard of the City Lord's Mansion.
"Old Zhang, what happened? What's the situation with these flying boats?" Li Si asked.
"Master Li, something big has happened!" The guard called Old Zhang hurriedly said.
"Speak slowly, don't rush."
Old Zhang took a deep breath and hurriedly explained the specific situation.
Then, everyone present, including Li Si and the disciples of the sword hall, fell silent. They frowned, and their expressions became very ugly.
"Longcheng Pass has fallen, and the Devil Disaster has entered the region. The Central Spirit Region is in danger!"
That was the answer.
In addition, there were many details, such as the betrayal of the Spirit Huan Sect, and the destruction of the Inter-region Teleportation Formation.
As for the most important thing to the people of this small town …
That was, after taking Longcheng Pass, the army of Demons in the Ceaseless Region used Longcheng Pass as an anchor point to cross Enchanting Ridge and pour into the Central Spirit Region like a flood breaking through a dam.
The inconspicuous small cities, small sects, and small families around Enchanting Ridge were like inconspicuous pebbles on a shallow beach. They were instantly submerged under the impact and beating of the flood.
Longcheng Pass was located in the westernmost region of the Central Spirit Region, so the Devil Disaster started from the west.
The Central Spirit Region was very large, so even if the Demons had a great advantage, it would take a very long time to completely engulf the Central Spirit Region.
When the Devil Race entered the Central Spirit Region, the major sects, clans, forces, and even the cultivators in charge of the cities in the Central Spirit Region immediately expressed their respect for the cultivators in Longcheng Pass who refused to retreat. Then, they quickly responded.
The cultivators in Longcheng Pass had sacrificed their lives for the clan, but there were still people alive who needed to take responsibility.
The first order issued by the cultivators in charge of the Central Spirit Region was to scorch the earth and clear the land.
In particular, they quickly evacuated all the humans in the western region of the Central Spirit Region and transported them to the safer eastern region of the Central Spirit Region.
All the forces in the Central Spirit Region worked together and in a short period of time, they took out hundreds of thousands of flying boats to transport the humans.
In addition, the Da Xia Kingdom also issued an order to recruit all the cultivators above the Fifth Realm in the western front line to organize a defense and try to buy time for the evacuation of the humans.
Although it was called organizing a defense, who didn't know that it was actually tantamount to "stalling for time with their lives"?
All the disciples in the Sword Pavilion were angry and shocked at this moment.
But they weren't too afraid.
Because they were still a long way from the front line, the Demons couldn't attack here in a short time. They could retreat to the east in an orderly manner.
As for the order of the Da Xia Kingdom, it had nothing to do with them.
First, their small city was located in the northwest, not in the western front line area indicated by the order.
Second, there were no cultivators above the Fifth Realm in the small city.
However, even though he said that, it was impossible for him not to feel anxious.
Besides, the flying boats had already reached the sky above the small city, and the evacuation was imminent.
Even if hundreds of thousands of flying boats were mobilized, it was still too little compared to the hundreds of millions of humans in the western part of the Central Spirit Region.
The flying boats needed to be used back and forth many times.
Therefore, the Da Xia Kingdom only gave them half a day.
These disciples were not in the mood to practice their swordsmanship or say anything more. They even forgot to say goodbye to Li Si and hurriedly left the Sword Pavilion. They went back to their homes, packed up their belongings, and prepared to board the flying boats to evacuate.
After Old Zhang reported the news, he immediately left.
He also had to go back and pack up his belongings.
Li Si had been silent since he heard the news of the fall of Longcheng Pass.
When the Sword Pavilion was empty, Li Si wandered around the courtyard, walked back to the armchair, and sat down again. He picked up the wine cup and drank.
However, the more he drank, the more depressed he became.
So he stopped.
No one knew what he was thinking, but the light in his eyes became brighter and brighter.
After a while, he got up again.
Li Si looked to the west, at the position of Longcheng Pass, and then poured the wine in the wine bag on the ground.
The fragrance of the wine filled the air.
He saluted to the west and said, "Let's drink together."
In the next half a day, he didn't pack up his belongings.
In fact, he didn't have any belongings at all.
The Sword Pavilion didn't make money at all.
Li Si just cleaned up the Sword Pavilion inside and out, making it spotless.
Then, he carefully wiped the Natal Sword that hadn't drunk blood for many years.
Finally, he walked out of the courtyard with his head held high and closed the door.
He didn't lock the door.
After taking two steps, Li Si seemed to have thought of something. He looked back, hesitated for a moment, and no longer hesitated.
He took down the plaque on the door.
"Feiyan, let's go together."
The plaque was taken down, so only the couplet was left at the entrance of the Sword Pavilion.
"Bully the weak and go elsewhere. Don't enter the Si Gate if you're afraid of death."
The large golden characters were embossed with a faint golden glow under the sunlight.
.....
Li Si slowly walked out of the city gate.
He saw the rolling crowd in the open space outside the city.
He couldn't see the end of it. It was a dark mass.
There were so many people.
Everyone's faces were filled with panic about the Demons' army entering the pass, confusion about leaving their homes, and even curiosity and anticipation about their first time on a flying boat …
Among them, many didn't even know what Demons were before this.
Even now, they didn't understand this concept.
They only knew that it was a very bad and very strong thing, so they had to retreat.
Li Si stood by the side of the road and looked at the rolling crowd, watching the old, young, women, and children board the flying boats one by one.
Every time a flying boat was full, it would rise into the air and fly east, breaking through the clouds. Because of the airflow caused by the extreme speed, it left behind a long tail that didn't disappear for a long time.
And at this time, there would always be children crying out in surprise.
For adults, leaving their homes often meant sadness and reluctance.
But for children, it meant novelty. The magic of the flying boats made them extremely happy.
Therefore, children were the only ones who could laugh at this moment.
Li Si watched from the side for a long time.
One flying boat after another broke through the air.
There were fewer and fewer people outside the city.
In the end, there was only one flying boat left that hadn't taken off.
"Master, let's go." A baby-faced cultivator walked up and said to Li Si.
Li Si glanced at him.
This was one of the many disciples of his Sword Pavilion, called Chang Youfu.
It was a very lucky name.
However, the owner of this name wasn't so lucky.
He was an orphan and grew up eating from a hundred families.
Twenty years ago, Li Si came to the small city and opened the "Flying Swallow Sword Li". Chang Youfu, who was still a mortal, walked in.
Chang Youfu was not a cultivator and couldn't even afford a symbolic spirit stone.
But in the end, Li Si still took him in and taught him cultivation techniques.
That was because Li Si saw something that belonged to a sword cultivator in Chang Youfu.
Reality proved that his judgment was not wrong. In just twenty years, Chang Youfu had already made some progress in sword cultivation.
Of course, Chang Youfu was also very respectful to his master, Li Si, and saw him as his biological father.
"Mm." Li Si nodded and said to Chang Youfu, "It's time to go."
"Master, you're going in the wrong direction. The flying boat is here!" Chang Youfu realized that Li Si was going in the wrong direction and hurriedly shouted.
"I'm not going in the wrong direction," Li Si said.
Chang Youfu was stunned and suddenly realized what Li Si meant. He was shocked and said nervously, "Master, you're going to the west?!"
"The Da Xia Kingdom has issued a Cultivation Expedition Order."
"They want cultivators above Level Five. Master, you're already so old …" Chang Youfu was anxious, so he didn't even care about propriety and spoke bluntly.
"I'm not above Level Five, but I'm still a Level Five. Also, I killed many devils when I was young."
"Your master is old, but I can still drink five jugs of wine in a meal. Don't underestimate your master."
Li Si's words did not calm Chang Youfu down.
The more he listened, the more uneasy he felt. "But the Cultivation Expedition Order is issued to the western frontlines. It has nothing to do with us!"
"I've been there before. There are only so many people at the frontlines. How long can they hold off the Devils?"
"But … it's useless even if you go alone." Chang Youfu's voice was already trembling.
"Who said I'll only be alone?" Li Si said softly.
Although he didn't see it, he knew that other than Li Si, there would definitely be Zhang San, Wang Wu, Zhao Lu, and thousands of other "Li Si" rushing to that battlefield.
"Youfu, if you want others to treat our lives as their own and risk their lives to save us, then you have to let them see how valuable our lives are," Li Si said to Chang Youfu.
Having stayed at Longcheng Pass, he had a broader vision than the average person.
Hence, he could faintly see the isolation and helplessness that the Central Spirit Region was about to face.
Li Si didn't know if the cultivators from other regions would risk their lives to support the Central Spirit Region.
He only knew that the Central Spirit Region would rather save themselves than hope for others to save them.
.....
"Master, then you must kill two more Devils," Chang Youfu said as he rubbed his reddened eyes.
Li Si saw something about a Sword Cultivator in Chang Youfu, so he took him in as his disciple.
And this was the temperament of a Sword Cultivator.
"Of course, your master is very strong," Li Si promised.
"Chang Youfu, hurry up. We're leaving."
At this moment, someone on the last flying ship behind them shouted to Chang Youfu.
They were about to leave.
"Go." Li Si waved his hand.
"Then … I'm leaving?" Chang Youfu said.
"Go."
Chang Youfu ran a few steps toward the flying ship, then stopped, turned around, and shouted to Li Si, "Master, when I cultivate to Level Five, I'll definitely come back."
"You must stay alive and wait for me to come back!"
He didn't dare to delay any longer. Without waiting for Li Si's reply, he hurriedly boarded the flying ship.
"That's great."
Li Si muttered as he silently watched the last flying ship rise into the air and break through the air toward the east.
He glanced at the small city that was already empty and smiled freely. With a thought, he summoned his Natal Sword that he hadn't used for a long time and rode it away.
The flying sword and the flying ship rose into the air one after another outside the small city. They each headed in two different directions, east and west, forming two streams of light that crisscrossed in the sky above.
The flying ship broke through the air, leaving behind a white trail as it retreated to the east.
The sword light cut through the air, bringing with it a blazing wave of air as it headed west.
Mortals headed east.
Sword Cultivators headed west.
.....
Li Si was just an old Level Five Sword Cultivator.
He was really very ordinary.
He was really not ordinary.
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