Chapter 277 Lecture on Daoism (1/2)

Before Shen Lian set foot in the Sword Palace, he saw countless abrasions and sword scratch marks across the marbled rocks. The grand majestic sword palace was scattered with shards of glass and tiles.

It was apparent that there had been a big battle.

One of Zuo Shaoqing's fellow disciple mentioned, ”Zhenren Shen, all these are damages caused by our senior Doyen while he was fighting with our Chief before he ran on mutiny.” It was not that the restriction of Qingjiang Sword Sect that was lacking, but Huang Longzi had invaded this mountain and shook its spiritual node, and significantly weakened the defense of the sword palace.

Because of this, Meng Xunzhen had a big fight with the previous Chief of Qingjiang Sword Sect and caused such commotion.

Shen Lian put his hands behind his back and said, ”I never expected that Qingjiang would stoop to this level after depending on me. Don't worry, I will stay on this mountain for a month and resolve all your difficulties in your cultivation. From here on, Shaoqing should stay here too to give you pointers.”

The disciple replied, ”Thank you Zhenren Shen, but there is one more thing.”

Zuo Shaoqing sneered, ”That is enough.”

Shen Lian showed his hand, ”What is it? Just tell me.”

That disciple glanced at Zuo Shaoqing, whose eyes were filled with fury, yet he bit his teeth, bowed with his head to the ground, and said to Shen Lian, ”Recently, Chiyan Clan, Five Venoms Order, Dark Wind Cave have been spying on our sect. I humbly request Zhenren to take charge of this for us.”

Shen Lian thought for a while, and he remembered that these three orders were the sects from the Nanjiang region. They were neither large nor small in size, not as grand as the previous Qingjiang, but with the recent leftover members of Qingjiang were like a couple of kittens, it made them comparatively stronger.

Zuo Shaoqing did not want them to mention this because he did not want to trouble Shen Lian further and get through trial on his own. One must mention that since that direct encounter with Huang Longzi in his dragon form, he grew by a large scale, including his True Wandering Light Sword which had sharper sword spirit, possibly exceeding his teacher Meng Xunzhen.

Shen Lian smiled, ”No problem. Next time they dare come again, I will teach them a lesson.”

He had the whole order on his shoulders. With his unmeasurable supernatural power, he speaking up would be a pill of relief for these disciples. They knew that Shen Lian did not forsake them because Qingjiang Sword Sect had fallen, so they were more grateful for that.

Instantly, Shen Lian was sitting on the rubbles of the Sword Palace, whereas Ruoxi was standing beside him. The setting sun shone on him, making him glow like a godly man.

Shen Lian asked, ”Do you lot want to learn about Dao of Swordsmanship?”

A disciple then replied, ”What are the essential points of learning swordsmanship and Daoism? Zhenren please enlighten us.”

Shen Lian continued, ”A swordsman holds a sword in his hands to charge past ensuing trials. He would cut down any rough encounters and remain cheerful for life. That is not the case with pursuing Daoism. You would learn about the theories of advance and retreat. Your heart may be free, but your body may feel restricted, and finally just age without any achievement and wilt on a brick or tile with no one remembering you.”

Another person asked, ”We have been learning swordsmanship since admitting into this sect, but we do not feel any more cheerful, can you tell us why that is the case, Zhenren Shen?”

Shen Lian chuckled, ”Only one reason, your swords are blunt.”

This reply triggered the laughter among the crowd. They all thought that this Zhenren Shen was so noble, but yet his words were so much approachable than the other elders.

Someone shouted, ”How about Zhenren give us a brief lesson of both?”

Zuo Shaoqing sneered, ”Nonsense, you don't get to choose what Zhenren Shen has to say.”

These energetic young disciples saw that Shen Lian was rather easy going, so they let down their initial cautiousness, just like the village kids who saw a young teacher, their guts grew more as they saw that this teacher had no arrogance.