Chapter 014

Chapter 14: Devil Heart or Conscience

Sword Mountain, the forbidden ground of Heavenly One Sect, is also a disciple trial site. Usually the Sword Mountain trial only starts after a disciple has been in the sect for at least half a year. Starting it this early can only mean one thing: Ye Wan Wan’s talent is outstanding.

[She accepted this easily.] In her last life, everyone cursed her as ruthless, jealous, and cold, a traitor to her clan and sect, but no one ever said she lacked talent. Even after her Golden Core was dug out and she switched to Talisman Dao, she never fell behind. Her talent was well known.

Seeing the few of them acting sneaky, Ye Wan Wan said with a calm face: “All right, I’ll go right away.”

“Don’t rush, finish eating first,” said Fang He An as he placed food in her bowl, his tone full of sympathy. “When you get there, hand the item to Senior Uncle Pei Xuan, and then… be extra careful.”

Ye Wan Wan paused, then answered: “Okay.”

After she finished eating, Ye Wan Wan left. Li Wan Zhi stared after her and asked in disbelief: “Her? Sword Mountain? Are you sure? I’ve never been there, but the old man at home told me only disciples who have been in the sect for a full year are allowed in. I don’t even want to go, but junior sister has only been here one month.”

He frowned and added: “One month? Can she even clear Sword Mountain’s checkpoints?”

Fang He An snapped back: “You think I sent her? It was the Sect Master Senior Uncle’s order. I’m just following it.”

Li Wan Zhi clicked his tongue and muttered: “Cruel.”

Fang He An lowered his voice and warned: “Remember this: after one year, every new disciple must take a master. If no one accepts you, you have to go down the mountain.”

Li Wan Zhi brightened at once: “Really? That’s great.”

Fang He An said dryly: “Yes. With your legs broken on the way down.”

Li Wan Zhi huffed: “Even with broken legs, I’ll still go down the mountain.”

“Spineless,” said Fang He An.

Li Wan Zhi sneered: “If you were me, would you give up being a comfortable young master to be some hard worked junior brother? Fine, I can leave, but Jin Yu has to be returned to me.”

“That is a Hybrid Beast with a Ferocious Beast bloodline,” said Fang He An, refusing to budge. “You want to take it? Dream on.”

Li Wan Zhi cursed under his breath, but Fang He An did not move.

“She will pass,” a woman’s voice said suddenly. They both turned to Bai Jian. Her face did not change as she repeated: “Junior Sister Ye will pass.”

Sword Mountain, also called Sword Tomb, is one of Heavenly One Sect’s forbidden places. No one may enter deep without leave. Inside lie the buried swords of all former sect masters, elders, and disciples of Heavenly One Sect. No matter how a person dies, their sword returns to Sword Mountain afterward, becoming one among thousands. Those swords have gathered into a peak that is both a sight to see and a training place for new disciples.

Carrying a brocade box, Ye Wan Wan stepped into the Sword Barrow. At once she felt a sharp Sword Intent. It rushed past like wind, blade gusts skimming her sides. A strand of her hair was cut and fell to the ground.

She glanced at the fallen hair and lowered her eyes slightly. Her expression stayed cool. With steady steps she walked deeper into the Sword Barrow. Sword Intent swelled on all sides, ready to strike, yet each of her steps stayed firm, without a hint of shaking.

Metallic echoes rang in her ears. Countless shouts gathered from every direction. Ye Wan Wan did not stop. Clutching a Spirit Talisman in her palm, she kept her face calm.

The scene shifted. She now stood in yellow sand. Devil Beasts howled in the distance, while one man with one sword stood before a city gate. He held his sword and looked out with a cold gaze.

A tide of ten thousand Devil Soldiers rolled toward the gate. He raised his sword and cut them down. In blowing sand and blood, in the roar of the crowd, the man in Daoist robes still stood before the city gate without retreat, guarding it to the death.

But the scene changed again. The Devil Soldiers and spears around him turned into fearful citizens.

“Don’t blame us, Daoist Master,” one cried. “They said if we kill you, they will spare the whole city. We just want to live.”

“Daoist Master, you are immortal, you won’t die,” another said. “We only need to stab you once.”

“Only if you die will they let us go,” someone begged. “You’ve lived for so long already. Please help us.”

A nicked cleaver chopped into living flesh. The scraping of metal against bone made teeth ache. One cut landed, then another. In moments, the young Daoist Master’s body turned into a bloody ruin. Some people attacked while crying. Some shouted forgive me even as they thrust their blades. Though the man had already fallen to his knees, the stream of knives and swords did not stop. Someone flung the city gates open and shouted: “We killed him already, spare us!”

In that crazed shouting, no one seemed to remember that this same man had stood at the gate for seven days and seven nights, keeping the whole city safe.

Ye Wan Wan stood before the Daoist Master. He looked to be in his early twenties, with a clean and handsome face, but now his features could not be seen. He was only torn flesh and blood.

“Did I do wrong?” he murmured. The soft question sounded like it rose from his soul.

Ye Wan Wan stood there and heard his confusion.

“I… did I do wrong?” he asked again. The voice echoed in her ears, as if he were asking her.

Ye Wan Wan stepped closer and crouched, looking at the blood all over the ground. She said coolly: “Act by your heart, not by right or wrong. If this is what you chose to do, then it is not wrong. Guarding the city is your Dao. Killing you is their Dao.”

His voice grew low: “Then is my Dao wrong?”

“Is it wrong?!” he roared.

“I don’t know,” said Ye Wan Wan.

At those words, the blood on the ground turned into rolling demonic energy. It surged up, covering heaven and earth, even the city walls. Darkness blotted out the sky. The demonic energy attacked everyone, including Ye Wan Wan. In that energy were his resentment, his hate, and all his confusion. From it was born a Heart Devil.

Inside the Heart Devil, Ye Wan Wan saw the young man change into herself. She frowned: [An illusion?]

“You are lying. This is your true answer,” the voice spat, vicious and pleased. “If you repay evil with good, then how will you repay good? Your heart is full of killing intent.”

It laughed wildly, as if mocking Ye Wan Wan’s fake kindness. This was Ye Wan Wan’s Devil Heart.

Ye Wan Wan’s expression did not change. She gathered his broken flesh and buried it in a pit, as if keeping a show of surface virtue and doing what her role should do. She covered the grave and set up a wooden marker.

The shadow snarled as it floated beside her: “You hate them. You hate how they stabbed you in the back.”

The crowd around her suddenly turned into Ji Chang Huai, Dou Ming, and Ye Qian. Blades thrust in. One sword pierced straight through her heart. Pain and choking rose in a rush. Ye Wan Wan’s face went pale, but her hand did not stop carving the marker.

“On Azure Cloud Peak, you were the smartest,” the voice taunted. “You had the best talent. You did the most for the sect. But no one ever praised your excellence. Everyone favored the more ordinary Ye Qian. You are extra.”

Ye Wan Wan’s eyes turned icy: “Shut up.”

“Your Golden Core from ten years of hard work, they dug it out when they wished,” the voice pressed on. “Your ten years of being called a genius, they gave and took as they pleased. What did you gain? You gained their Seven Swords through the heart. You should hate even more than I do. Why pretend?”

Ye Wan Wan’s gaze grew cold, then slowly blood red. She dipped her finger in the blood on the ground and wrote on the wood. It was not a person’s name. It was one word: Conscience.