Su Bei walked quietly towards the Sword Concealing Pavilion, his gaze calm and his stunning visage inscrutable.
A sword hung suspended behind him; he carried his hands behind his back, letting the biting ice and snow whip across his face.
Especially those eyes, indifferent to everything, as if all the people in the world were no more than ants in his eyes.
All disciples of the Sword Sect held their breath, staring blankly at the peerless figure in white standing before them.
Sighs of admiration and murmurs of discussion were incessant at the entrance of the Sword Concealing Pavilion!
"Ah! Now that's a true master!"
"They all say that the Fifth Elder is the one with the lowest realm among the elders! But I think he's just being modest!"
"Yeah, yeah! How could the Fifth Elder merely be at the Divinity Transformation Realm?"
"This temperament of his simply outclasses the other elders..."
"After all, the Fifth Elder is the only normal person among these elders."
Just then, a Sword Sect Disciple, dressed in blue, imitating Su Bei's detached demeanor, carried his hands behind his back and with closed eyes, full of pretense, said faintly,
"I can guarantee that the Fifth Elder is definitely not at the Divinity Transformation Realm."
As soon as the words of the disciple in blue fell, they immediately piqued the interests of countless others.
One of the female disciples had already taken out her notebook, looking dignified and solemn at the man in blue.
The notebook had some intermittent information which could barely be made out:
[Su Bei, the Fifth Elder, likes to eat chicken, often wears black underwear, has gone to the Sword Concealing Pavilion thirty-two times within the last fifty years, prefers to step forward with his left foot first, always says he possesses "eighteen centimeters" (don't understand), likes to kick off the covers when he sleeps, has abs, a mole on his left buttock...]
"Oh?"
"What do you mean?"
"How did Brother Da Dao come to this conclusion?"
"Please enlighten us!"
The man in blue sneered, and under the dazzling sunlight, he looked up at the sky at a graceful 45-degree angle.
A row of cranes gracefully circled in the vault of heaven, and a bird dropping landed on the tip of the man's nose:
"Hmph, I became a disciple of the Sword Sect a hundred years ago, and at that time the Fifth Elder was already known throughout the Twenty-One Provinces as being at the Mid Stage Divinity Transformation.
"A hundred years have passed, and with my dull talents, I've cultivated to the Peak Golden Core stage and am about to enter the Soul Integration Realm.
"In a hundred years, even a pig, in the Sword Sect's secret ground rich with Spiritual Energy, can cultivate to the Golden Core Realm.
"Elder Su is so elegant and refined, with a lofty spirit and extraordinary bearing. He is both intelligent and handsome, a gentleman of character—tall, imposing, and with a remarkable appearance, a stature that towers over seven feet. He causes envy among men and yearning among women, a lone swan amidst rejected suitors. How could such a person remain at the same level?
"Who knows, perhaps Elder Su's current realm has already reached the Peak Refining Void stage or even stepped into Dao Integration!"
The female disciple with the notebook frowned slightly, a question in her voice,
"Then why would the Fifth Elder hide his realm? Wouldn't it be better to make it known?"
"Yeah! What's there to hide about his realm?"
"Speaking out should be fine, right?"
The man in blue scoffed and with a CLANG, he drew the treasure sword in his hand and roared,
"Big Treasure Sword!"
After sheathing his sword, he calmed the surging in his heart, clenched his fists tightly, and exclaimed with all his might,
"This is exactly where the Fifth Elder deserves our admiration!
"The breadth and robustness of the Fifth Elder's mind.
"These past few days in the Sword Concealing Pavilion, I have been immersing myself in reading the Fifth Elder's masterpiece, 'Blade in the Snow.'
"The character Su Fengnian within the book carries the burden of his own difficult fate, concealing his skills; I believe the Fifth Elder must have his own unspeakable sorrows!
"For the grand aspirations of the Sect, the Fifth Elder resolutely bears the infamy of being the Sword Sect Elder with the lowest realm, enduring the scorn of people from the Twenty-One Provinces without protest, silently bearing all this!
"His heart is no longer something that we ordinary mortals can understand!
"His realm has long exceeded the level we can imagine. It is another world! A vast world where flowers bloom in brilliant profusion..."
"Hmm, the Fifth Elder's Dao heart is like that determined chrysanthemum blooming in early winter!"
Listening to the man in blue, the disciples had an epiphany and looked towards the distant figure with a sword on his back, their eyes filled with admiration.
Tears streamed down many faces, and a profound sense of shared purpose, as if embracing the weight of the world, spread through the hearts of all the disciples.
No wonder he was the Fifth Elder! The Sword Sect's peerless genius!
They absolutely could not allow the Fifth Elder to be wronged! At that moment, everyone present resolved to soon venture out from the Sword Sect and proclaim the Fifth Elder's greatness!
The woman holding a notebook also solemnly nodded, furiously writing several sentences of profound significance in her book!
[The Fifth Elder is very big, very thick, likes to hide his skills, does not fancy the company of common folks, and seeks to find another world where chrysanthemums bloom in abundance.]
[He is currently at the Dao Integration Realm and will soon step into the Mahayana.]
Su Bei leisurely walked into the Sword Concealing Pavilion.
The moment his left foot crossed the threshold, a deeply unsettling feeling washed over him.
Bad news! That crazy woman is coming!
Su Bei quickly swallowed and moved slightly to one side.
In an instant, a streak of sword light shot out from Su Bei's right side.
The fierce sword wind howled, blowing Su Bei's hair apart.
A short-haired woman in a purple robe appeared beside Su Bei.
Her skin was fairer than snow, her arched eyebrows as graceful as a crescent moon, and her eyes bright, her teeth white. Beneath her delicate nose, her cherry lips bloomed like a plum blossom.
The purple robe with embroidered stars at the cuffs further accentuated her dainty and slender jade-like fingers.
A sword was suspended by her side.
The Star Sword Immortal! Dan Wuque!
All the disciples dared not even breathe, staring blankly at the peerless woman.
This is the Eighth Elder! The Early Stage Refining Void Eighth Elder!
Indeed, the Fifth Elder had come for the Eighth Elder!
"Fifth Senior Brother, where are you headed?"
Dan Wuque's eyes were firm as she looked at Su Bei.
Su Bei looked into those eyes and sighed softly,
"To tread the Sword Concealing Pavilion, to select secret manuals!"
"What if you do not return?"
"Then I shall not return!"
Dan Wuque nodded resolutely, holding her sword horizontally, and looked at Su Bei. She took a deep breath and said solemnly,
"Fifth Senior Brother! Junior Sister wishes to inquire about the Dao!
"The Sword Heart you taught me two years ago—that man can be the sword, and the sword is man—I have already gained some understanding of it!
"But to this day, I still haven't reached the realm you spoke of, where with a blade of grass in hand, one can sever a myriad of stars!
"What exactly is that realm? What is that Sword Intent?"
"Junior Sister does not understand!"
All the Sword Sect disciples looked at Dan Wuque in shock, their gazes deeply fixed on Su Bei.
What exactly is the realm of the Fifth Elder?
A blade of grass to sever a myriad of stars?
What sort of terrifying realm is that?
They all paused their actions, ready to listen to Su Bei's profound Daoist wisdom!
How would I know how to sever the sun, moon, and stars with a blade of grass? It was clearly because I found you annoying and I was just spouting nonsense...
But looking around, all the disciples were looking at him with expectant eyes.
Clearly, if he couldn't provide a very reasonable explanation, his hard-earned reputation would be ruined in an instant!