Food Fairy Lord

Chapter 802 Feather Scales (Part 5)

Changsun Che walked over, patted Pei Ye on the shoulder, and said with a smile, "Hello, Pei Ye, nice to meet you. I am Changsun Che."

He didn't use much force, but Pei Ye felt inexplicably uncomfortable. He stood up, clasped his hands in a fist and smiled, "Greetings, Young Master Changsun. The sword and arrow you just saw were truly captivating. I am Pei Ye."

"Not at all, my sword is far inferior to Young Master Pei's divine sword. I hope Young Master Pei will give me some pointers sometime." Changsun Che smiled and looked him up and down. "Young Master Pei, are you participating in the Feather Scale Trial?"

Changsun Jue said from the side, "It was Pei who took the taxi. Pei is seventh on the Fu Ranking."

Changsun Che raised an eyebrow, genuinely surprised, and carefully examined the young man before him. He had just returned to the capital last night and was indeed not well-informed about the news from Shenjing. He clasped his hands in a fist and asked, "Young Master Pei is... Yun Lang?"

"I dare not accept that; I am but a recluse from the countryside. But I have indeed received much instruction from Master Mingjian."

Changsun Che nodded with a smile: "I don't think Young Hero Pei is as wooden as Yun Lang."

“Classmate Pei, look, I’ve finished drawing it for you.” Changsun Jue held up the drawing board and smiled at him. “Is it beautiful? — Immortal Jiang, look.”

Jiang Yin'er nodded repeatedly: "Changsun, your drawing is getting better and better."

Pei Ye took it and said with a smile, "I have never received such a beautiful painting before. Thank you, fellow student Changsun."

"No need to be so polite. I hope you will come to the Imperial Academy to study soon, and I can help you catch up on the classics you have missed."

Changsun Che glanced at the cross-legged boy, then moved his gaze to Shi Zanxue on his left, then to Jiang Yin'er on his right, then to Cui Zhaoye on Jiang Yin'er's right, then to his own younger sister next to Cui Zhaoye... and finally back to Pei Ye, and fell silent.

Pei Ye held the painting and smiled slightly at him, feeling that he understood how his eldest brother, Changsun, felt.

Although his relationship with his classmate Changsun was purely platonic and a gentlemanly friendship, he could imagine that after two years away from the capital, when he returned to meet Yin'er, the girl would lower her head and say, "I'm making a sword tassel for Zhao Tongxiu. His swordsmanship is truly captivating. Brother, why don't you learn from him?"

He turned to look at the girl beside him. Jiang Yin'er was eating the dates that Yan Feiqing had given her, looking at him blankly.

The bell soon rang again.

Yu Jian's voice echoed across the sword platform: "Second round, second place goes to [Shao Chun] Li Shenyi, right, ninth place goes to Xu Daoshan, and [Jing Huan Xian Zhu] He Miao."

“Li Shenyi. The head of the Li family in the Northwest also has this name.” Pei Ye tilted his head to the left.

"It is indeed him." Shi Zanxue nodded. "How much does Young Hero Pei know about him?"

I know a little bit.

Pei Ye was seeing this elegant man who had walked onto the stage for the first time. His impression of him came from Xu Chuo's story, which went back to the time when they were dealing with Li Du. Pei Ye asked how to deal with the Li family's counterattack. Li Xizhou shook his head and said that Li Shenyi had written to him.

“I didn’t expect that he, as the head of a prestigious family, would personally come to test his skills against the Feather Scales,” he added.

“It started in the previous two sessions,” Shi Zanxue said. “Since Li Shenyi took power, the Li family has been constantly moving closer to the martial arts world, and now they have established some roots. The other five family heads are indeed not as prominent as him.”

"Aristocratic families also have their own cultivation traditions, right?"

“Naturally. The five families have been entrenched in the land of the Tang Dynasty for six hundred years, and even a thousand years before that. During that time, they went through many upheavals, and their sects and lineages were scattered and disappeared. Later, they all gathered under the five tall trees.” Shi Zanxue said, “After selection, reorganization and development, outstanding figures emerged. Each of the five families has its own unique skills and hidden trump cards.”

"Of course, six hundred years is a long time, but compared with several ancient schools, it's hard to say whether it's a 'tradition,' because it's a collection, not a direct lineage. It may be powerful, but it's hard to say where it comes from. It's not easy to discuss from a martial arts perspective."

Pei Ye nodded slowly: "I see."

"【Shao Chun】Li Shenyi should be forty-three years old this year. In his youth, he socialized in the capital and was known for his 'extraordinary talent and outstanding appearance, as bright as the pine and moon, as radiant as ice and snow.' Later, at the age of thirty-five, he returned to the west to take charge of the Li family, and it has only been a little over seven years since then. He has participated in both generations of Yu Lin," Shi Zanxue said. "Therefore, he can be ranked second for two reasons. First, his swordsmanship is divine. Although he does not have the inheritance of the top five sects, he is still able to integrate and form his own unique style. Second, the spiritual scripture that the Li family possesses, the 'Great Body Without Form Method,' is cultivated by him to an extremely high level. In the cultivation of spiritual scriptures of this level, he should be said to be the best on the Crane List."

"Not even Wang Jiuqiao?" Pei Ye tilted his head. "He just passed right through an arrow; what kind of technique is that?"

Shi Zanxue shook her head and smiled: "I can't tell. However, the Great Body Formless Method is ranked seventh in the Spirit Scriptures section, and the Twenty-Four Secrets of Jade Lock Golden Gate is ranked thirteenth in the Profound Scriptures section. Wang Jiuqiao has not yet been able to cultivate the Taoist scripture at a higher level."

Pei Ye paused for a moment: "I don't know much about the Spirit Scripture and Profound Scripture. Is this Spirit Scripture very powerful?"

“Young Master Pei has reached the pinnacle of the Pulse Realm, so naturally he has no time to learn about these things.” Shi Zanxue smiled gently. “Although the ‘Lingxuan Grand Canon’ was published by the Immortal Platform, it is not ordered by the Immortal Platform. There are still undiscovered vacancies, but the order is fixed.”

"It should be said that any Lingxuan Scripture is very powerful. For ordinary grandmasters, being able to master even one will completely transform their strength. Some sects with weak sword techniques rely on the Lingxuan Scripture as their sect's treasure. Those ranked in the top fifty are not to be trifled with; those ranked in the top thirty possess first-rate Xuanmen techniques, enabling them to overcome enemies beyond their level and turn defeat into victory, all thanks to this scripture."

"Those ranked in the top twenty are often the closely guarded secrets of the top sects, with little information about them except for their names. When they occasionally appear in the martial world, they are regarded as supernatural beings or mysterious unsolved cases," Shi Zanxue said. "It seems that the Immortal Platform's pursuit of immortal power has led to many misconceptions due to this."

"What about the top ten?"

"The top ten are spiritual scriptures like the Great Body Without Form Method," Shi Zanxue said. "There are a total of twenty such scriptures, which are extremely rare in the world. Their effects and power are hard to describe, each with unimaginable wonders, making them treasures of the world. Young Hero Pei has now seen them, and the Li family master has cultivated one of them, hence he is ranked second on the Crane List."

Li Shenyi stepped onto the platform.

Looking at Pei Ye from afar, he was indeed a rare figure. He was very handsome and dashing, but he had neither an ethereal air nor a feminine air; he was simply a real and handsome man.

He didn't seem like a young man in his twenties; he had the air of a forty-year-old. He had a smile on his lips, but he wasn't frivolous or obsequious... Pei Ye found it hard to describe the feeling this man gave him. In short, he was neither repulsive nor contemptible; it was probably the behavior ingrained by forty years of habits.

He had a jade-carved sword hanging at his waist and bowed to He Miao, who was walking up to him: "Master from the immortal mountain, please enlighten me."

He Miao didn't say much. He looked exactly the same as when he was at the inn. He drew his sword and returned the greeting: "Please give me your guidance, Patriarch Li."

He Miao is a swordsman, and the gap between the two has narrowed somewhat, making this match much more exciting.

This was probably the first swordplay match since the start of the Yu Lin Trial that was enough to make a name for oneself in the martial arts world. Zhu Gaoyang's swordsmanship skills were perhaps not much worse than He Miao's, but Guan Yi was far inferior to Li Shenyi.

Pei Ye was no stranger to He Miao's sword. He had fought with He Jiu and He Yaoyao. Xu Daoshan's sword always exuded a sense of otherworldly beauty—not the exquisite kind, but the ethereal kind.

If Yun Lang's transcendence stems from his unwavering dedication to the sword, then Xu Daoshan's focus is on transcendence itself.

He Miao was the first swordsman who did not hold back on his intentional swordplay. His swordplay was exquisite, beautiful, and free, and his clumsy intentions were indistinguishable from his skillful ones. He almost brought the entire sword platform into a kind of intoxicating dream, which seemed real yet unreal, illusory yet real.

Pei Ye recognized several of them: the exquisite Three Trees, the powerful sword of intent, Heavenly Observation... Pei Ye had just never seen them transformed in this way.

This seemingly dull-witted man, who had no presence in the capital, possessed such divine swordsmanship.

Many on the high seats judged in the blink of an eye that he would rise in rank this year; Nie Shangheng was no match for him, and it was hard to say whether Zhao Wu'e would be able to meet him. Li Shenyi's swordsmanship was indeed unique.

Pei Ye didn't recognize almost any of the swords, and the sword manuals rarely mentioned what the "Li Family Sword" should look like, but it was indeed a real style.

From north to south, from ancient times to the present, swords of all sizes... everything is available, and men can choose and allocate them according to their own will, forming a feasible system.

Pei Ye repeatedly sensed sudden changes and conflicts, but everything before him flowed so smoothly. After a moment's thought, he suddenly realized that while the "Li Family Sword" might not actually exist, the "Li Shenyi" sword had already reached an extremely high level.

Amidst the dazzling exchanges, Li Shenyi always wore a smile, and gradually, Pei Ye sensed that he was catching a glimpse of a playful spirit within him.

This comes from the head of the Li family.

He doesn't actually practice swordsmanship.

Swords are an interesting thing.

Just like playing chess, drinking tea, raising cranes, and planting flowers.

In many places where he could have connected with a more powerful sword, Li Shenyi didn't make that choice. Instead, he made another, more ingenious, more interesting, but much weaker option.

Therefore, he lost in the game of Yijian.

Perhaps he would still lose even after giving it his all, but that would be a more interesting defeat than this.

However, He Miao did not win.

When He Miao used his most powerful sword, Li Shenyi sheathed his sword.

He Miao's sword pierced his throat, and blood flowed out, but it also traveled up and circled along invisible veins in the surrounding air. Li Shenyi did not seem to be in much discomfort.

He grasped He Miao's sword, and He Miao froze on the spot.

Li Shenyi pressed down on his wrist, slowly pushing his sword back into its sheath, and then smiled again.

Pei Ye paused for a moment, then slowly looked up. He saw the few strands of blood that He Miao had stabbed rising like inverted raindrops, higher than the sword platform, higher than the pavilions, higher than the entire capital city... reaching hundreds of feet, as if flying straight into the sky.

But it flowed down again.

The red thread, spanning dozens of feet in width, meandered across most of the Winter Sword Platform before finally returning to Li Shenyi's body.

This was the first time Pei Ye had witnessed such a bizarre scene, and he held his breath.

“That is the Great Body Without Form Method,” Shi Zanxue said softly. “It is said to make the spiritual body formless in order to become a true body. The formless body that Li Shenyi cultivated was a large Chinese toon tree.”

Pei Ye was silent for a moment: "Miss Shi, may I ask if I may ask, where is the 'Records of Jade from the Western Sea,' a mysterious scripture from Tianshan?"

"Ninth in the Xuanjing Section".

"I saw An Sifeng use it that night, but it didn't seem to have such miraculous effects."

Shi Zanxue nodded: "The top ten spiritual scriptures are all very different. Some are profound and mysterious, difficult to learn, such as the Great Body Without Form; others are broad and upright, and can be learned by everyone. The mediocre can be demoted, and the capable can be promoted, such as the Record of Jade from the Western Sea."

"Furthermore, there are indeed differences between the Spirit Scriptures and the Profound Scriptures. The Profound Scriptures are prepared for martial artists and are mostly offensive techniques, much like a weapon. Their strength is influenced by the martial artist himself. The Spirit Scriptures, on the other hand, are techniques of sorcerers. They are mysterious and profound, with varying effects. They are based on the Spirit and Profound Scriptures and are less affected by the cultivator himself. Therefore, it can be said that the Spirit Scriptures are more difficult to deal with than the Profound Scriptures."

Pei Ye nodded slowly.

He turned his gaze to the stage. He Miao and Li Shenyi had already left. He took a deep breath and looked on expectantly. The bell rang again.

"The third round. Third place goes to Yunlang Mountain, [Gushe] Ming Qitian. Right, eighth place goes to Tianshan, [Chiji] Nie Shangheng."

The area around the Winter Sword Platform was filled with countless figures; most of the spectators for the sixteenth scale trial were gathered around the Feather Trial.

While Wang Jiuqiao and Li Shenyi were indeed strong, they had already reached a certain level of prominence and influence. One was thirty-seven years old, and the other was forty-three.

Twenty-one-year-old Ming Qitian is a legend who has emerged out of nowhere in this generation.

For three years, she has been vying for supremacy in the martial arts world, and news of her whereabouts has spread throughout the land... Never before has someone so young been so powerful.

Besides, she was extremely beautiful.

Everyone who has seen her says she looks like a celestial being. Many people don't understand swordsmanship and magic, but they can understand beauty and ugliness.

Countless people had only heard of him by name, and when they heard this long-awaited name, they shouted excitedly. But when this person in white walked up, the surrounding noise actually subsided.

It was still noisy, but this was the quietest arena since the start of the Feather Scale Trial.

"Miss Shi, Senior Nie... could he be hiding some trump card?" Pei Ye tilted her head and whispered.

Shi Zanxue smiled without moving: "Who can say for sure?"

Ming Qitian made no special movements, drew his sword and bowed, saying, "Please instruct me, Tianshan Chiji."

Nie Shangheng took a deep breath: "Please excuse my clumsy sword."

Shi Zanxue was clearly bluffing him. The two had fought when they were asking questions at Tianshan, and Nie Shangheng was even injured on the Eight Rivers.

As expected, Nie Shangheng did not lose his fighting spirit, but all his vigorous and powerful swordsmanship was rendered ineffective in the face of that clean sword.

Ming Qitian did not display the incomprehensible supernatural abilities of the previous two cultivators. She simply held a sword calmly and naturally defeated Nie Shangheng.

Pei Ye watched with a smile. He loved watching women wield swords more than anyone else.

After watching the match between He Hongzhu and Zhao Wu'e, Pei Ye returned to the Lin Test Platform and finished his own matches for the day. When he stepped off the platform, it was already dark, and the woman in white was waiting for him not far away.

(End of this chapter)