First Immortal of the Sword

In Meng Po Palace, Cui Jingyan was an extraordinary existence.

This was because of her extraordinary background.

Her father was the head of the Cui Family, the Overseers of the Six Paths of Reincarnation, and her grandfather was one of the Six Sovereigns of the Netherworld, the Adjudicator Cui Longxiang.

Even her mother had once been one of Meng Po Palace’s Emissaries of the River!

Although her mother had long since left her post, her prestige remained.

Their current palace master still called Cui Jingyan’s mother “martial aunt.”

Thus, although Cui Jingyan was just a Meng Po Palace disciple on paper, and although she occupied no official post, she was of the same generation as their palace leader!

Of course, seniority had always been a mess in the world of cultivation. No matter how extraordinary her status was, Cui Jingyan was just an ordinary Meng Po Palace disciple.

It was just that no one dared treat her like one.

“Jingyan, did something happen to upset you?” the Ninth Libationer said gently. He could tell that Cui Jingyun was out of sorts.

“I encountered someone strange, and I want to ask you some questions,” Cui Jingyan said a bit dejectedly.

The Ninth Libationer and Xue Ye looked at each other. Their eyes shone with a strange light.

For Cui Jingyan to call this person strange, he had to be extraordinary.

“Tell us about it,” the Ninth Libationer said warmly.

Cui Jingyan then launched straight into the tale of her encounter with Su Yi.

By the time they heard the full story, the Ninth Libationer and Xue Ye were no longer as calm as they’d been before. They looked grim, and their expressions contained irrepressible alarm and bewilderment.

“It’s not that surprising that he could discern your cultivation boundary and the nature of your talent at a glance. Knowing the name of our sect’s loftiest inheritance isn’t strange either,” muttered the Ninth Libationer. “What’s strange is that he knew that the ninth chapter of the Classic of Nightmares and Comprehending the Profound records the Empty Countenance of the Heart Dream Incantation!”

Xue Ye nodded. “Ordinary disciples can only cultivate the first three chapters, while legacy disciples and deacons can cultivate the first six. Only dharma protectors and up have access to the secret incantations of the ninth chapter.

“In other words, even within Meng Po Palace, those beneath the dharma protector level don’t know that the Classic of Nightmares and Comprehending the Profound’s ninth chapter records the Empty Countenance of the Heart Dream Incantation.”

Xue Ye frowned. “So why does Su Yi know about it? That’s far too strange!”

Cui Jingyan sighed. “Right? How did that guy find out about it?”

“That’s only the first suspicious part about this.” The Ninth Libationer took a deep breath and said, “The second is that Like a Shadow is a peak soul technique even in the Netherworld. Ordinary Spiritual Revolution cultivators cannot possibly sense it. But Su Yi didn’t just see through it at a glance; he even neutralized it so easily that there's no way he didn't know all about it beforehand!”

The Ninth Libationer’s expression was utterly solemn.

This was a young man of the Azure Continent, yet he knew their loftiest inheritances and ultimate techniques like the back of his hand. There was obviously something out of the ordinary going on here!

Cui Jingyan pursed her lips. “I refrained from attacking all-out precisely because I sensed that something was amiss. That’s how he extorted a full six Yellow Springs Spirit-Condensing Pills out of me!”

As she said that last part, this unearthly beauty gnashed her teeth, her eyes practically spitting fire

What a humiliation!

“Six!?” The Ninth Libationer and Xue Ye’s expressions darkened, and their hearts ached.

Yellow Springs Spirit-Condensing Pills weren’t cabbages! Even in Meng Po Palace, they were a first-rate medicine. Even authority figures of their level had few such pills on them.

Yet Su Yi had obtained six through extortion in one fell swoop!

“It’s like he saw you as a fatty sheep,” said Xue Ye with a bitter laugh.

Cui Jingyan’s background was extraordinary and transcendent. She naturally had no shortage of Yellow Springs Spirit-Condensing Pills.

But it was likely for that very reason that Su Yi saw her as a fatty lamb just waiting to be slaughtered…

“No, something’s not right!” The Ninth Libationer suddenly furrowed his brow. “Jingyan, how did he know you had the pills?”

Xue Ye’s eyelids twitched. He sensed something fishy about this too.

Indeed, it seemed that Su Yi didn’t just know about Yellow Springs Spirit-Condensing Pills; he even knew with certainty that Cui Jingyan had them in her pocket!

Cui Jingyan said dejectedly, “If I knew, would I have come to ask about it?”

The Ninth Libationer had nothing to say to that.

Xue Ye suddenly realized something, and his expression shifted. “He must have realized who you were!”

“That’s right. I bet that old blind man of the Ghost Lantern Sarcophagus Bearers told him,” said Cui Jingyan with a nod. “After all, he’s been snooping around the Dark Immortal Grounds lately.”

Xue Ye shook his head. “It couldn’t have been the old blind man. When we came to the Azure Continent, the palace master ordered that no one was to leak your identity. Even if the old blind man had all-encompassing powers, he could never have uncovered your background.”

Cui Jingyan was visibly flabbergasted. “For real?”

“For real,” said Xue Ye.”

“But he guessed my surname at a glance!” said Cui Jingyan in bewilderment. “Don’t tell me he really recognized the jade pendant my grandfather gave me?”

As she spoke, she plucked it off her waist, her expression shifting erratically.

The Ninth Libationer exclaimed, “Is that pendant… the handiwork of the Adjudicator of the Netherworld?”

Cui Jingyan nodded.

The Ninth Libationer and Xue Ye looked at each other, and both of them gasped. Their hearts shook, and they were increasingly aware of the severity of the problem. 

Not even they had known the pendant’s origins, yet Su Yi seemed to have used it to determine her background. This was simply unbelievable!

“Su Yi’s origins absolutely aren’t simple!” After a while, Xue Ye furrowed his brow. “I even suspect that, just like the old blind man, he hails from the Netherworld!”

The Ninth Libationer furrowed his brow. “But have you ever heard of someone who knows Meng Po Palace’s legacies and secret arts like the back of their hand and is capable of recognizing the Adjudicator of the Netherworld’s handiwork at a glance? And he’s so young!”

Xue Ye and Cui Jingyan both fell silent.

Everything about this seemed fishy, and they felt completely lost. The more they thought about it, the more off it seemed.

Suddenly, the Ninth Libationer seemed to realize something. “Jingyan, did His Excellency the Adjudicator of the Netherworld give you that pendant because of your expedition to the Azure Continent?”

“You could say that,” said Cui Jingyan.

“Then… Did he give you any instructions along with it?”

Cui Jingyan’s delicate eyebrows furrowed. After a moment of thought, she said, “My father said it could protect me, and I could use it to save my life.”

“Right!” She suddenly thought of something. “At the time, I said that if the pendant was really that precious, I ought to hide it carefully and keep it in reserve. However, my father insisted that I hang it from my waist. He said it was the ancestor’s orders, and that on the off chance anyone recognized it, they’d refrain from troubling me out of respect for our ancestor.

“At the time, I thought nothing of it, but looking back on it now…” Cui Jingyan couldn’t help but blurt, “No wonder that Su guy said he wouldn’t have let me off if I weren’t surnamed Cui! He… He recognized the pendant my ancestor gave me! That has to be it!”

The Ninth Libationer and Xue Ye’s expressions filled with uncertainty.

It seemed the answer had already been revealed.

However, this answer made their hearts shake, and they felt an indescribable bewilderment. 

What kind of terrifying existence was Cui Longxiang, the Adjudicator of the Netherworld? Whatever he did surely had a deeper meaning behind it.

Meng Po Palace’s palace master had originally refused to let Cui Jingyan participate in this expedition to the Azure Continent due to her extraordinary status; they couldn’t afford to let anything happen to her.

But against all expectations, the leader of the Cui Family sent a letter saying that he hoped she could participate for experience and as a trial.

Only then did the palace master agree.

But now, the Ninth Libationer and Xue Ye realized that the Cui Family’s arrangements weren’t as simple as they seemed on the surface!

The crux of the matter was the jaded pendant, as well as the Adjudicator of the Netherworld’s orders!

If the pendant were merely a reserve defensive treasure, it would have naturally been best to hide it so that no one discovered it.

But the Adjudicator of the Netherworld didn’t let Cui Jingyan do that.

Why?

The Adjudicator of the Netherworld said that if no one recognized the pendant, there’d be no difference between carrying it openly and hiding it.

But on the off chance that someone did recognize it, they’d naturally give him face and refrain from making trouble for Cui Jingyan!

That was the crux of the matter.

It almost seemed that the Adjudicator of the Netherworld had long since guessed that someone on the Azure Continent would be able to recognize the pendant he’d refined.

That was why he permitted Cui Jingyan to go, and why he had her carry the pendant on her person!

It was like going fishing. The pendant was the bait, and the fish took the bait by seeing through it!

And today, Su Yi had become that very fish. By seeing through the bait, he’d confirmed the Adjudicator of the Netherworld’s logic!

But after they overcame their astonishment, they were even more bewildered than before.

No matter how heaven-defying or dazzling Su Yi was, he was ultimately just a Spiritual Manifestation Realm young man. How could he possibly attract the Adjudicator of the Netherworld’s attention?

Much less make him send Cui Jingyan to the Azure Continent carrying a pendant he’d refined?

“Even if our ancestor is fishing, he ought to be after a big fish. How could he possibly be interested in a… little junior like Su Yi?” Cui Jingyan had obviously guessed some of her ancestor’s intentions. She was stunned, but more than that, she was baffled.

The atmosphere in the secret room was instantly stifled and oppressive. All three of their hearts shook.

Their conclusion was far too unbelievable!

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A long time passed before the Ninth Libationer calmed himself and said gravely, “There are only two possibilities. The first is that Su Yi has something on him that His Excellency the Adjudicator of the Netherworld is interested in. The other is that Su Yi’s origins are really extraordinary!”

Cui Jingyan said with assurance, “Who in the Netherworld doesn’t know how high my ancestor’s standards are? There’s no way he’d take an interest in a Spiritual Manifestation cultivator’s possessions!”

“Then there’s only one other possibility.”

The Ninth Libationer and Xue Ye looked at each other. Both were increasingly astonished and confused. 

What kind of background could a young man from the Azure Continent have for the Adjudicator of the Netherworld to attach such importance to him?