A Will Eternal

Bai Xiaochun looked down silently at the valley. After the tempering he had undergone in the Blood Stream Sect, he had become capable of acting ruthlessly, of cutting people down like grass. There weren’t very many cultivators in this clan, and as for the people in the necropolis, they were all injured. With a simple order, he could wipe out the whole clan and the stragglers from the Profound Stream Sect.

After a moment of silence, he said, “You people already agreed to surrender and offer allegiance to the sect alliance. Why are you doing this...?”

His Heavenspan Dharma Eye began to shine as brightly as a sun, unleashing intense control power which instantly pierced all the way into the necropolis underneath the valley.

The eight injured Profound Stream Sect cultivators in the necropolis all began to tremble, and blue veins bulged out on their faces and necks. Hoarse shouts erupted from their mouths, and yet, their bodies weren’t under their own control. Struggling the entire time, they reached up and then smashed their hands down onto the tops of their heads.

Popping sounds rang out as seven of them coughed up blood and then toppled over, dead. However, one of them, and old man, struggled free. Blood oozing out of his mouth, he shot out of the necropolis, an expression of shock on his face as he sped off in the opposite direction.

In response to the sudden development, expressions of shock and terror appeared on the faces of the cultivator clan members. As for the patriarch, his face went ashen, and he began to sway back and forth unsteadily as if he were about to pass out.

Before the old man from the Profound Stream Sect could get very far, Jia Lie shot after him in pursuit. Before long, a miserable shriek rang out, and then Jia Lie returned with the man’s head. Murderous aura bristling, he hovered next to Bai Xiaochun, looking down at the group in the valley and licking his lips as if he was imagining drinking their blood.

Jia Lie wasn’t the only one; cultivators from both of the sects were doing similar things.

Silence filled the valley, and the bitter cultivators’ despair grew more intense.

“This is war,” Bai Xiaochun said, “and there is no right or wrong. There are only different positions.... Take this as a warning. Follow our sect alliance. At the moment, there is no better option for you.” With that, he waved his sleeve, and the blood sword began to fly off into the distance. The cultivators of the two sects cast cold glances at the cultivator clan before flying away.

After Bai Xiaochun left, the cultivator clan stood there, feeling like they were in a dream. They had just been on the threshold of the gates of hell, and had somehow survived. Their hearts were still pounding with fear. After a long silence, the blank look in the eyes of the patriarch transformed into determination.

After looking around at his fellow clan members, he saw that many of them wore expressions of gratefulness. “That man,” he thought, “must have been... the legendary Bai Xiaochun. He truly is a Chosen. A single look from him killed all those people from the Profound Stream Sect.... He could have crushed us, but instead, let us go.... He threatened us, but at the same time, treated us well. Instead of causing us to hate him, we ended up feeling grateful....”

“Heh heh. If he keeps doing things that way, he’ll reach amazing heights!” The old man gritted his teeth, and suddenly waved his right hand. Sword light erupted out, instantly slashing off the heads of three of his fellow clansmen!

It happened so quickly that the three victims didn't even have a chance to react.

“Henceforth,” he announced, “the Hanyun Clan will follow the Spirit Stream Sect and the Blood Stream Sect. Those three were inextricably linked to the Profound Stream Sect. By killing them, we sever all the old ties. Let that serve as a warning to any other Profound Stream Sect sympathizers!”

**

“If I hadn’t stopped the war between the Spirit Stream Sect and the Blood Stream Sect, then it wouldn’t have been long before the Profound Stream Sect was hunting for stragglers just like I am now.” Bai Xiaochun sighed and looked around at the cultivators from the two sects. He suddenly realized that they were looking at him in a different way than before.

They seemed more passionate, and even more respectful. The way he'd killed the Profound Stream Sect stragglers, and then dealt with the Hanyun Clan, caused quite a few of the cultivators to approve of him even more than before.

Even Beihan Lie’s attitude seem to have changed somewhat. There was something strange in his eyes when he looked at Bai Xiaochun. As for Jia Lie and Master God-Diviner, they also glanced over at Bai Xiaochun with odd looks.

Bai Xiaochun smiled. He was aware that he had grown up quite a bit, and understood certain things much better than he had before. In some situations, he would do things that he didn’t necessarily want to do, as long as it meant protecting his family, his friends, and his sect.

“My shoulders aren’t broad enough to hold up the heavens. But I can certainly support my sect, my family, and my friends....”

Eyes shining brightly, he unleashed the power of his cultivation base, sending the blood sword rumbling through the air even faster than before. As it whistled along, they passed one cultivator clan after another that had surrendered. Rumbling sounds filled heaven and earth, and countless heads turned to look at them as they passed.

When they found Profound Stream Sect cultivators, Bai Xiaochun didn't actually have to do anything. The cultivators of the two sects would fly out to handle the situation. When it came to the cultivator clans involved, he didn’t treat them all the same. Based on the observations he made, and his own judgment, some got the same treatment as the Hanyun Clan, but others ended up being wiped out.

That was the best way to cow the local populace and stabilize the conquered territory. It was also the only way that their forces on the front lines could continue to advance safely.

Soon, word spread about what Bai Xiaochun was doing, and the cultivator clans began to prepare for his arrival. Slowly, the search for the Profound Stream Sect stragglers started to get more difficult. One option was to just destroy every clan on his list. However, that could destabilize the entire region behind the front lines. After all, the cultivator clans in question were not to be underestimated; there was a reason why the armies of the Blood Stream Sect and the Spirit Stream Sect hadn’t tangled with them during the initial invasion.

Furthermore, the complete and utter defeat of the Profound Stream Sect and their subsidiary clans was not the ultimate goal. The Spirit Stream Sect and the Blood Stream Sect wanted to absorb their power to strengthen themselves.

Three times in a row, they encountered cultivator clans who had completely sealed off their clan headquarters. No matter what Bai Xiaochun said, or how angry he got, they refused to even respond to him. Thankfully, some of them offered up gifts to him, which he begrudgingly accepted.

Bai Xiaochun was starting to feel very down. Looking at the mission jade slip, he frowned. The jade slip mentioned six particular cultivator clans regarding whom concrete evidence had been gathered, proving that they were not only harboring Profound Stream Sect cultivators, but were also planning insurrections.

“I don’t get it. If the patriarchs have definite proof, why don’t they just send people to wipe them out?” After thinking about the matter for a while, his eyes lit up, and he slapped his thigh.

“Ah, now I understand. Dammit! How come I’m so slow on the uptake? Obviously the patriarchs are rewarding me by giving me a chance to extort some loot.... After I'm finished extorting them, the sect will send people over to destroy them!

“Hahaha! That’s definitely what's going on!” Having reached this point in his train of thought, Bai Xiaochun was more convinced than ever that he had just been muddle-headed before. He even decided that the blackmail aspect was an important part of his mission.

“The patriarchs are really great. Of course they want to reward me! Although, they could have just said so! There was no reason to be so vague about it.” Feeling pleased, and looking forward to what was coming, he led his group of two hundred or so cultivators toward the next cultivator clan.

The following day, an emerald green mountain rose up in front of them. Glittering lights surrounded the mountain peak, which was obviously a powerful defensive spell formation.

He could immediately tell that this clan had done the same thing as the previous few clans, and had completely locked themselves down. Standing there on the huge blood sword, Bai Xiaochun said, “Xuanguang Clan, I, Bai Xiaochun, have come on official business--”

Before he could even finish speaking, rumbling sounds echoed out, and an enormous figure rose up above the mountain, a giant made of pure light.

The giant’s eyes were closed, as if it were sleeping. However, moments later, a rumbling voice filled the air.

“Bai Xiaochun, the Xuanguang Clan has sealed itself off to the world. You’re not welcome here!”

Immediately after the thunderous words echoed out, the giant slowly faded away, and the mountain went quiet. Obviously, they really had sealed themselves away.

Bai Xiaochun wasn’t very happy about being interrupted, but when he thought about the gift that would surely be coming moments later, he brightened a bit. Clearing his throat, he said, “I know you’re completely sealed. But I can’t just leave empty-handed. How about this: why don’t you--”

Before he could finish, he was interrupted again. “Screw off!”

“Huh?” This was not the reaction he'd gotten from the other clans. Furthermore, he'd been interrupted a second time. He was really starting to get mad now.

“Are you really cursing at me? I never said anything unreasonable, did I? Look, I have a lot of people here with me, and we traveled a long way to get here. Why don’t you--”

“Screw off!!” The voice sounded even more enraged than before, and echoed out like thunder from the heavens.

“Fudge!!” Bai Xiaochun exclaimed. He had been interrupted three times in a row, and by this point, his fury was burning hot. How could this clan be so vile? Not only did they refuse to allow him to inspect their clan, they also refused to give him gifts, and even cursed him!

Looking around angrily, he said, “Sect Nieces and Nephews, this enemy is a crafty one, so we have to be even craftier. If we don't, how else will we accomplish our mission?!”

Beihan Lie, Master God-Diviner, and Jia Lie all chuckled coldly inside.

“The Xuanguang Clan’s spell formation draws upon all the spiritual energy in that mountain,” Beihan Lie said coolly. “Even if we all attack it together, we wouldn’t be able to break it open any time soon. If we rush things, it could destabilize the area behind the front lines. What exactly are we supposed to do?”

Everyone else looked over bleakly at Bai Xiaochun.

Bai Xiaochun was angrier than ever that the reward handed to him by the patriarchs was turning out to be so frustrating. After a moment of silence, he gritted his teeth.

“Since they’re being such bullies. I... I think I’ll have to concoct some medicine!” The surrounding cultivators immediately began to tremble, and some of them even cried out in alarm. Within the blink of an eye, all two hundred of them backed up by 30 meters or so.

Beihan Lie, Master God-Diviner, and Jia Lie were the fastest among the group. As soon as they heard Bai Xiaochun mention concocting medicine, their faces fell, and they backed up as quickly as possible.