Chapter 79 — Seven
The Sword Questions the Heavens · Page 6 of 6
Lin Jinghong was taken aback, but seeing the old man about to enter the Ancestral Hall, he suddenly came to himself and said urgently, "Senior! Today the Demonic Cult has come in force against Qingyun—I beg you, you must lend your hand!"
The old man's steps paused for a moment, but he did not turn around. He only said mildly, "The Canglan Sect has masters as numerous as the clouds, and Sect Master Daoyan is a rare genius of the age, unmatched in this world. With him present, what is there to fear?"
Lin Jinghong stepped forward and cried out in grief, "But—but the Sect Master has already been gravely wounded!"
The old man was plainly startled; he whirled about and said, "Who could have wounded Daoyan?"
Lin Jinghong suddenly fell silent. He knew, of course, who the culprit was—but now, to speak the name of Daoist Cangyan, some inexplicable sorrow rose in him, as though once the name was spoken, something between him and that man would be broken forever. For a moment he could not bring himself to speak!
But the old man pressed on: "And Daoyan? How is he now?"
Lin Jinghong said, "The Sect Master is badly hurt, but for some reason he has gone into the Phantom Moon Cave."
"The Phantom Moon Cave!" The old man's face suddenly grew calm and still. After a long while, he spoke to Lin Jinghong—or rather, more to himself—with a faint sigh: "The Canglan Sect has stood a thousand years as a great power. What are you afraid of?"
So saying, the old man slowly turned again. Lin Jinghong went pale and cried in alarm, "Senior! Will you stand by and do nothing while Qingyun falls into peril?"
The old man gave what seemed a somewhat desolate smile and said, "Young man, the Canglan Sect has stood for close upon two thousand years. Its hidden strength is far beyond anything you could know! Set your mind at ease."
Lin Jinghong did not understand, and was about to plead again, when he suddenly felt the Dragon-Slaying Sword, quiet in his hand until now, grow hot along its whole length, as though provoked by something—and once more the green radiance blazed forth.
Lin Jinghong stared at the Dragon-Slaying Sword in his hand, astonished, when a sudden feeling came over him. He turned to look toward the direction of the Illusory Moon Cavern, and there, among the mountain peaks, a brilliant shaft of light shot straight up into the heavens, while the Dragon-Slaying Sword in his grasp seemed to be aimed at that very place, giving a low, faint hum.
"It has emerged! It has finally emerged!"
The old man, who at some point had also turned his gaze there, wore a face heavy with the complex expressions of a life's vicissitudes, and said softly, "Child, you are very fortunate. Soon you will witness that legendary ancient sword, the Immortal-Slayer!"