Gentlemen, it's time to enter the Banner of Ten Thousand Souls.

Chapter 77 The girls all said it was good
Despite being the most renowned expert in the Tongxuan Realm, Su Chunyi's life at the Qinghe Sword Sect was far from comfortable.

Having finally returned from Cui County, the first thing to do is to give a full account of what happened.

Then, his master and several senior disciples repeatedly questioned him to confirm that there was no oppression of mortals or killing of innocent people to claim credit.

Other sects would need to spend a lot of manpower and resources to hold a heart-questioning ceremony, but the Qinghe Sword Sect can save time and effort because they can directly question the sword heart.

The essence of the Qinghe Sword Technique lies in sincerity.

If you are sincere, your sword will not be tarnished.

If you are stained with dust, anyone can see that your sword light has changed its appearance.

Then you need to give a reasonable explanation, and then an elder in the family will help you resolve your doubts.

If one cannot provide a coherent explanation, or if one's sword heart remains impure, then it is no ordinary problem. One must undergo a rigorous examination at the Sword Cleansing Hall to ensure that one has not fallen into the demonic path.

Once a violation of the sect rules is discovered, the punishment ranges from imprisonment to the abolition of cultivation or even execution.

The Qinghe Sword Sect does not have the punishment of "expulsion from the sect" because those who qualify for this punishment are guilty of countless crimes and must be killed as a warning to others.

The rules of the sect are so strict that the number of disciples in the Qinghe Sword Sect is decreasing.

However, this also created a good reputation for the Qinghe Sword Sect. As long as you don't do anything wrong, you don't need to worry about encountering cultivators from the Qinghe Sword Sect.

After passing through multiple rounds of scrutiny, Su Chun finally gained the sect's approval.

Before she could even rest, Su Chunyi was already preparing to choose a reward for Chen Ye.

The Qinghe Sword Sect originally wanted to give Chen Ye a magic weapon, but most of the treasures in the treasury were flying swords, and Su Chun knew at first glance that Chen Ye was not suitable for using a sword.

Although Chen Ye was a genius in cultivation, his studies were too diverse, and he couldn't calm down and focus solely on sword practice.

Without this pure and unwavering mind, even if you give him a flying sword, it won't be able to unleash much power.

However, Chen Ye's cultivation level was too low, and he couldn't use the other magic treasures in the treasure vault, which made Su Chunyi feel troubled.

After thinking for two days without finding anything suitable, Su Chunyi had no choice but to seek help from her master.

Su Chunyi's master, Wang Wancheng, is a swordsmith of the Qinghe Sword Sect.

Interestingly, Wang Wancheng's swordsmanship was not among the best in the Qinghe Sword Sect, so he devoted himself to learning sword forging. He never expected to be able to teach a disciple as skilled in swordsmanship as Su Chunyi.

Before Su Chunyi started learning swordsmanship, she saw Wang Wancheng carrying a sword box and was very envious. So Wang Wancheng carefully crafted one for her. The Qinglian sword that Su Chunyi uses now was also forged by Wang Wancheng himself.

Wang Wancheng would boast to everyone he met about his good fortune in finding such a talented disciple, and he was extremely obedient to Su Chunyi.

The sword-making room was always bustling with activity, and Wang Wancheng liked to watch the furnace fire there even when he wasn't forging swords.

Almost all the men in the Qinghe Sword Sect grew beards, imitating their leader Zhang Qi, except for Wang Wancheng, whose face was clean-shaven.

Because he had to personally control the furnace fire when forging swords in his early years, he accidentally burned his beard, so he simply shaved it off, and it became a habit as he got older.

Wang Wancheng, who rarely grows a beard, looks remarkably young, more like Su Chunyi's father than an old man who is hundreds of years older.

Su Chunyi respectfully called out, "Master."

Wang Wancheng turned around and saw Su Chunyi with a big smile: "Why are you in the sword-making room? Don't you usually practice your sword at this time?"

Su Chun smiled and said, "I've come to pay my respects to Master, and I also have something I'd like to ask you."

Wang Wancheng said in surprise, "That's rare. I've long since run out of things to teach you. But you've come at the right time, as I also have two things to tell you."

Su Chun asked in confusion, "Did my disciple do something wrong?"

Wang Wancheng quickly said, "What's wrong with that? Although you lack experience and didn't handle the Cui County matter perfectly, it wasn't a big mistake. The little girl you brought back is also quite talented. The instructors in the mountains have praised her highly. You've found a good sword prospect for the sect."

"What is it that Master wants to say?"

Wang Wancheng explained, "My old friend wrote to me. The Fenxiang Sect also wants to recruit the young man you recommended before. After all, you knew each other before and you recommended him to join the Qinghe Sword Sect, so the Fenxiang Sect came to make a request."

Although Chen Ye did not join the Qinghe Sword Sect, Qinghe had extended an invitation first, and the Fenxiang Sect had to be polite to avoid any conflict. Human relationships are complicated, but one cannot escape them in life.

"The Incense Burning Sect?"

Su Chunyi frowned. Her impression of Wei Changsheng was very poor. She had always heard that the Fenxiang Sect was now corrupt, and she felt that Chen Ye was not suitable to join the sect.

Wang Wancheng laughed and said, "What, are you worried about that boy?"

Su Chunyi said frankly, "Chen Ye is indeed not suitable for the Incense Burning Sect. Although he is a genius in cultivation, he is also a gentleman. There is too much infighting in the Incense Burning Sect nowadays."

"A gentleman of modesty..." Wang Wancheng pondered the praise, feeling something was amiss. Why would his old friend say the same thing? It certainly wasn't that the old man who went to Hundred Seas Valley to meet the young man himself. It must have been a young disciple of the Incense Burning Sect who got to know Chen Ye and then came to that conclusion.

However, it seems that the old man's apprentice is also a young girl.

Two young girls met the same man and both said he was nice. Something doesn't seem right.

Unaware of her master's unusual expression, Su Chunyi continued, "Master, you said there were two things. What's the other one?"

"The Hundred Seas Valley Gathering is about to begin. This is a rare event, and all five major sects will send representatives to participate. The sect leader said that it would be good for you to represent the Qinghe Sect and get to know the young talents of other sects."

Su Chun nodded and said, "Disciple obeys."

"Oh, and I almost forgot, send this to your friend."

With a wave of his hand, Wang Wancheng summoned a long black and white banner that floated from the corner of the wall.

Wang Wancheng flicked the long banner with his finger, and the spirit of an old man floated out and bowed to Wang Wancheng and Su Chun.

"Miss Su, it's been a long time."

Su Chunyi recognized the ghost; it was Yang Chongguang, the main soul of Chen Ye's Ten Thousand Soul Banner, a veteran of countless battles.

Su Chunyi asked in surprise, "How did you get here?"

This is clearly Chen Ye's Ten Thousand Souls Banner. Back then, in order to save himself, he threw away the Ten Thousand Souls Banner and let his master find his own way to survive. How could this demonic magic weapon appear in the Qinghe Sword Sect?

Wang Wancheng said, "Ask the spirits inside for the specific reason yourself. All I can say is that the kid is loyal and righteous, and the spirits inside the Ten Thousand Souls Banner have not let him down. It has been many years since I have seen such a righteous person who would entrust his life to another."

"Didn't the sect leader say he wanted to choose a magic weapon? None of the magic weapons in the treasure vault were suitable, so I helped him refine one again. Although I don't understand the Myriad Soul Banner, I'm quite skilled at refining magic weapons, so I guarantee it will suit him."

Su Chun hurriedly took the Ten Thousand Soul Banner. She had originally wanted to ask her master for help in refining a magic weapon, but she didn't expect that he had already prepared it.

"Thank you, Master."

Wang Wancheng laughed and said, "What are you thanking me for? It's not like it's a gift for you. Why don't you thank me on behalf of that kid?"

Su Chun lowered her head, her face slightly flushed.

Seeing Su Chunyi's appearance, Wang Wancheng couldn't help but shake his head. His apprentice had grown up.

Wang Wancheng originally wanted to offer some advice, but then he thought that his wife still wouldn't say anything. He wasn't exactly a seasoned player in matters of the heart, and he might be led astray by Su Chun. Children and grandchildren have their own destinies, and only he could truly understand the meaning of love.

Wang Wancheng waved his hand and said, "Get ready, then head to Hundred Seas Valley. The gathering of rogue cultivators is quite lively, but our Qinghe Sword Sect doesn't have much to offer for trade. Just bring some pills and swords."

"Disciple obeys."

Just as Su Chunyi was about to take her leave, Wang Wancheng suddenly seemed to remember something and said, "Oh, right, I forgot something again. Be careful of the snakes in Hundred Seas Valley this time."

"snake?"

Su Chunyi was a little puzzled. What was there to care about with this snake?
"My old friend from the Incense Burning Sect is very skilled at divination. That's what he said in his letter to me. It's always better to be careful. Especially when you encounter a red-banded snake with its bones growing out, treat it as the most ferocious demon, understand?"

Su Chunyi seemed to understand, but not quite; she had never heard of a red-banded snake with its bones growing on the outside.

However, since her master gave such instructions, she would certainly be cautious.

Carrying the Myriad Souls Banner, Su Chunyi left the sword-forging room, disregarding that he was in the Qinghe Sword Sect. He eagerly shook the banner and summoned Yang Chongguang, asking, "Old man, how did you end up in Qinghe?"

Yang Chongguang explained, "That day, you were injured, and our benefactor didn't want to leave you alone. We discussed it with our benefactor... well, we couldn't just watch you go to your deaths, so we decided to take a gamble and come to the Qinghe Sword Sect to report the news."

"But you know, young lady, we are just the spirits within a magical artifact. We can fly, but not very fast. We finally arrived in Qinghe, only to be captured by the cultivators here and almost killed on the spot. Fortunately, the gentlemen of your sect are quite reasonable. After listening to my explanation, they put away the Ten Thousand Soul Banner."

"Then, we met the girl's master. I thought we were going to be melted into the sword-making furnace, but after he questioned us several times, he let us go."

Su Chunyi then understood what her master meant by entrusting her life to him.

Chen Ye, unwilling to implicate them, "released" the Ten Thousand Souls Banner. As a result, the spirits within the banner, grateful for Chen Ye's kindness, disregarded their status as a demonic artifact and ran to Qinghe to deliver the message.

Although it was a bit late, this sense of loyalty—willing to risk one's life to repay a debt of gratitude—is truly admirable.

This is also related to Su Chunyi's repeated reports to the Qinghe Sword Sect. If they hadn't known in advance that a young man had used the Ten Thousand Soul Banner to save people, Yang Chongguang and the others would probably have been melted down or sealed away, and dealt with separately after the matter was investigated.

As Su Chunyi was reflecting on this, she suddenly remembered something.

Su Chunyi asked, "Chen Ye's master seems to be in the Ten Thousand Souls Banner as well. Where is he now?"

(End of this chapter)