[Yuelan's POV]
"Hmph." Yuelan turned around, heading toward the cave's exit.
All the while, Xuan sat cross-legged, cultivating in front of that ugly shrine.
She came here expecting some kind of loot, but she walked out with a sour mood.
Linhua... Linhua... Who does this woman think she is? Yuelan thought with a pout, crawling through the hole. Showing up and trying to steal my brother... Tsk tsk...
She made her way down the mountain, then walked past the lake and back toward the survivor's camp.
Yuelan wasn't stupid, so she knew that the moment she came back, she would be met with angry men trying to poison her.
But it's whatever. I'm prepared for whatever they throw at me, Yuelan thought with a hum as she opened her status screen.
Name: Xiao Yuelan
Cultivation: First Level Spirit Warrior
(Qi: 5,292,050 / 25,600,000)
Legacy: Scripture of the Moonpiercing Saintess (Stage 1)
Bloodline: None
Physique: None
Physical Strength: 8,700
Mental Strength: 4,800
Physical Defense: 4,670
Mental Defense: 4,700
Her stats were fine and all, but there was one issue...
Perform 5,000,000 Vertical Swings (4,299 / 5,000,000)
Reach Mastery Level 10 in Basic Swordsmanship of the Moonpiercing Saintess (1 / 10)
Unlock Sword Qi (Incomplete)
What do you mean Unlock Sword Qi? I already have! Yuelan pouted, swinging her sword around.
In the many games she played and the books she read, there were several instances where Sword Qi was used. But it was always just some stupid Qi infusion into the sword, and she already had that.
Yuelan sighed, then suddenly halted, recalling one piece of literature she had read when she was younger.
"Sword Intent...?" Yuelan mumbled.
Wait... In that old wuxia series, wasn't there a dude who could slice a river in half without even swinging?
And that was when memories of that book came flooding in, making her realize just what she needed.
To use Sword Qi I first need to learn Sword Intent, and to do that, I need to understand what... or who I'm swinging the sword for, huh? Yuelan thought with a smile.
It was a lot to think about, so she would put it aside for the time being.
After all, she had just arrived in front of that ugly survivor's camp, and as expected, all the people who spotted her waved with fake smiles.
And then there was the old man from earlier who slowly approached, glancing around.
"Where's your brother?" he asked. "Is he not coming?"
"Nope, he's a bit busy washing up," Yuelan replied plainly. "What's your name, by the way? You know us, but we don't know anything about you."
"Ah, my apologies." The man scratched the back of his head. "My name is Guo Sheng, and I am the one in charge of this settlement."
Yuelan raised a brow. "Isn't the Snow Lotus faction in charge of this camp?"
Guo Sheng's eyes widened. "You know about the Snow Lotus faction? I suppose you do... you and your brother don't live under a rock after all."
Yuelan's smile twitched slightly.
On the contrary...
"But yes," Guo Sheng continued. "I am just the one who oversees this camp while the true leaders are out. But believe it or not, they are going to come back very soon."
He suddenly turned his head toward the entrance, and in the next instant, the gates swung open, revealing several dozen people all dressed in fancy white clothes. They had a white lotus symbol on their backs.
Yuelan focused Qi into her eyes, then scanned everyone who had arrived.
Out of the several hundred people, only two seemed somewhat strong.
One of them was a teenage boy with golden hair and a sword at his waist, and the other was a man Xuan's age. Yet he had some kind of bladeless sword in his grip.
Family heirloom, maybe? Yuelan pondered.
When they arrived at the center of the encampment, everyone present suddenly kneeled, even Guo Sheng.
But not Yuelan.
"I welcome back the Heavenly Swordsman, Yujin Ru!" Guo Sheng yelled at the top of his lungs, gazing at the teenage boy.
Yet Yujin Ru didn't seem to care for his formalities as he unsheathed his sword and raised it in the air ominously.
"I told you to call me Young Master. Is it that hard to do, Old Sheng?" Yujin Ru asked coldly, then turned to Yuelan. "And who is this woman? Why isn't she kneeling?"
"Ah... she's new here," Guo Sheng chimed in with a faint smirk. "She's one of the Twin Demons. Her brother is near the lake."
"Oh?" Yujin Ru tilted his head. "So you're one of those heartless bastards, aren't you? Why haven't you killed her yet, Old Sheng?"
"Young Master, I—"
"Alright, shut up," Yuelan cut him off sternly, then glanced at Yujin Ru. "And how exactly have they been calling you? The Heavenly Swordsman? You're not even holding the sword properly. You're better off holding a ladle and cooking here than playing as some powerful figure."
When she finished speaking, gasps resounded, and even some people nearby fainted. But those who hadn't fainted had a lot to say.
"Who does this woman think she is disrespecting the Young Master!"
"Yeah! I say we kill her! We already planned on poisoning her, so let's just use our blades!"
"I agree! There's no way she can take all of us on!"
"Silence..." Yujin Ru said, raising his voice. "Woman, you say I cannot hold a sword properly, so what do you say we have a little spar to see which one of us can't hold the sword properly, huh?"
"Hm? Alright," Yuelan agreed right away, unsheathing her sword.
Since she couldn't use Sword Qi just yet, she went with the cheap alternative, and that was to cover it with the Basic Sword Slash skill.
Then, she pointed the sword at Yujin Ru, causing all the people beside him to scatter and surround the two of them in a ring-like fashion.
Yujin Ru took a deep breath and entered a combat stance. Then, without hesitation, he kicked off the ground, appearing in front of Yuelan.