In the evening, another old friend came to visit.
The visitors were a group of martial artists radiating immense vital energy, people from Iron Floating Mountain. Long Dongjun led the way, soaring on the wind, with several fellow disciples at the Celestial Origin Realm behind him. However, the current Long Dongjun looked sickly, his complexion pale and his aura less robust than before. He was merely an eleventh-realm martial artist.
Back then, during the Battle of Shanhai Pass, Long Dongjun had been one of the primary forces in annihilating the fourteenth-realm great demon, Lotus Petal. Yet, he had also sustained the most severe injuries. Under the fierce attacks of Chen Feng, Liu Bai, and Long Zheng, his entire martial foundation had been nearly shattered. Fortunately, he had been in the Rebirth Realm at the time and had the Nirvana Style protecting him, which saved his life.
But to return to the Rebirth Realm would likely require significant effort. Moreover, Long Dongjun was not young anymore. The battle at Shanhai Pass had somewhat eroded his fighting spirit, leaving him with many lingering ailments. Whether he could regain his peak would depend on his own state of mind.
"Lin Zhao!"
Long Dongjun laughed heartily and opened his arms, intending to give Lin Zhao a bear hug.
"No, no, no..."
Lin Zhao quickly dodged and said, "Sect Master, please don't be so impulsive."
"Hahaha~~~"
Long Dongjun roared with laughter. "It's good to see you alive!"
"I never expected to see Sect Master again."
Lin Zhao prepared tea outside the Natural Dwelling and sat opposite Long Dongjun at a small table. He asked, "How is Sect Master's injury?"
"The same as usual."
Long Dongjun said, "After being knocked out of the Rebirth Realm, this body's recovery ability has indeed weakened significantly. Just a month ago, I finally managed to completely expel Chen Feng's sword qi. That demon king is formidable; the trace of Wind of Three Realms he refined is truly potent."
"It's alright, I'll kill him sooner or later," Lin Zhao flashed his white teeth.
Long Dongjun couldn't help but burst into laughter and gave Lin Zhao a thumbs-up. They were a good match. The Grand Marshal of the human realm should be this vindictive, otherwise, it would be no fun.
"Right."
Long Dongjun glanced at Zhuozhi standing not far away, then reached into his pocket and began pulling things out. "This visit isn't just to see you. Iron Floating Mountain, as a brother sect to the Mountain Peak Villa, it would be remiss of us not to contribute something to your rebuilding efforts. The gift may be modest, but the sentiment is deep. I hope you won't find it lacking!"
Lin Zhao dared not refuse. After all, Long Dongjun was giving him too much.
He presented four twelfth-realm demon cores, and furthermore, an extremely precious fourteenth-realm demon core – precisely the demon core of the great demon Lotus Petal. As for Ji An's demon core, it had been gifted to Zhuozhi by Yu Wanling. With this, Zhuozhi now possessed two fourteenth-realm demon cores, plus a pile of twelfth-realm demon cores. This was more than enough to refine ten more Demon Soul Swords.
In addition, Long Dongjun also gave him 1,500 gold zhi coins, slyly mentioning that these had been painstakingly saved from his own dowry, making it quite a feat. Lin Zhao naturally understood how difficult this was. Long Dongjun was a martial artist; whether it was leaving the mountain to kill demons or heading south to eliminate ancient demonic calamities, it was never as convenient as for a sword immortal. Moreover, Long Dongjun was no longer in the Rebirth Realm, and to produce so many gold zhi coins was truly going above and beyond.
"Thank you!"
Lin Zhao said, "As a return gift, it can't be too meager."
Saying this, he took out a small portion of the wine that Shang Hu Jun had recently left him for amusement – a jar of Dongting Purple Bamboo Wine, plus five jars of Red Bamboo Wine. This was enough for Long Dongjun to drink for several days. Long Dongjun's face lit up instantly. What martial artist, like sword immortals, doesn't enjoy wine? He gladly accepted it all. After chatting with Lin Zhao for a while longer, he didn't stay for dinner and returned to Iron Floating Mountain with his disciples.
...
After seeing Long Dongjun and his entourage off, Lin Zhao kept the gold zhi coins and then gave the pile of demon cores to Zhuozhi, saying, "Alright, now we have enough. Can you finally nurture the Demon Soul Swords and get your cultivation back on track?"
"Yes, I lack some sword embryos."
"Oh?"
Lin Zhao frowned. "What a shame. I forgot to collect the Sword Mountain before the Battle of Baicheng. Otherwise..."
"My Lord!"
Zhuozhi's voice held a hint of coquetry. She smiled. "My Lord only needs to consider the overall strategic situation. Do you still need to personally handle such minor matters? I had already collected the Sword Mountain before it perished in Wuwang Mountain. Look..."
She flipped her palm, and a stone spall radiating abundant spiritual energy slowly rotated in her palm, emitting wisps of profound Daoistic energy. This was precisely the Sword Mountain. Zhuozhi pushed the Sword Mountain forward slightly and said, "Years ago, Sword Immortal Lin gifted the Sword Mountain to My Lord, and you personally planted it in the back mountain. It's the same today; it must be you who replants the Sword Mountain."
"Alright!"
Lin Zhao accepted without hesitation, picked up the Sword Mountain, and became one with his sword, heading towards the back mountain. Zhuozhi, riding her sword behind him, was panting and couldn't catch up. Her pretty face was flushed, and her heart was filled with joy. My Lord is truly extraordinary now! A dignified eleventh-realm sword immortal; even with all her cultivation, she couldn't catch up.
In the back mountain, Lin Zhao entwined a wisp of his own sword intent and spiritual energy around the Sword Mountain, then threw it into the back mountain. Before long, a rumbling Sword Mountain rose, transforming into one of the peaks in the back mountain. The Dao of the Sword was dense with energy, and the Sword Mountain was covered in various sword embryos. Ten years had passed, and they had been nurtured for a decade within Zhuozhi's sleeve dimension. The Sword Mountain was not only filled with countless Heaven-grade sword embryos but had also nurtured three or four immortal swords.
Perfect. They would all be used to compensate Zhuozhi.
"Go."
Lin Zhao slightly raised his eyebrows and said, "Ten Demon Soul Swords of Heaven-grade will suffice, but your Natal Flying Sword must be of immortal sword quality. Don't be polite; take them all. Your combat power needs to be restored as soon as possible, otherwise, I always feel uneasy."
"Mmm!"
Zhuozhi smiled joyfully and floated away. She soon selected three immortal swords and ten Heaven-grade long swords.
...
As night fell.
Zhuozhi did not rush to refine the Demon Soul Swords. Instead, she followed behind Lin Zhao. Lin Zhao called out to Yu Wanling, and the three members of the Mountain Peak Villa, currently residing only in the Snow Domain Celestial Pond, headed to the back mountain together. In fact, Zhuozhi and Yu Wanling knew what Lin Zhao intended to do and did not try to dissuade him. Some things were bound to happen, and the sooner, the better.
Shortly after, Lin Zhao, carrying a shovel, began digging new graves in front of the tombs of his old friends. In front of the tombs of Luo Yang, Lei Yue, Gu Luan, Hua Ping, and the other ten from back then, Lin Zhao quickly erected six new graves.
Afterward, he swung his sword to cut rocks and fashion gravestones, using the Flying Sword Xin Huo to carve characters onto the stone tablets. He wrote the names: Su Qingjiu, Tang Guangjun, Mu Ya, Chu Yu, Dong Cang, and Liu Liying. Currently, only Dong Cang's fate was uncertain, but the signs pointed to a grim end. Falling into the hands of a thirteenth-realm pine wood spirit, ten years had passed. Perhaps Dong Cang had been refined and was no longer in this world.
Looking at the familiar names, Zhuozhi and Yu Wanling's eyes instantly welled up with tears.
Lin Zhao took a deep breath, lit candles on each gravestone, and then, holding a jar of Purple Bamboo Wine, poured it bowl by bowl in front of everyone's tombs as a tribute.
"Dong Cang..."
He held the wine jar, his eyes reddening. "In my heart, you were the best, most wonderful girl in the world. You should have been happily married and raising a family in a peaceful world. It was I who kept you by my side, exposing you to the hardships on the mountain. I'm sorry..."
Saying this, he walked to Liu Liying's tomb and said softly, "Liying, if only I hadn't brought you out, if I had left you in the Hundred Flowers Realm, how wonderful that would have been. With your talent, you would have been lording it over the Hundred Flowers Realm by now. That would have been far better than staying by my side and being ruthlessly killed by those beasts..."
Yu Wanling clenched her fists, silent tears falling.
Lin Zhao moved on, kneeling before Mu Ya's tomb. He poured a bowl of wine into the muddy ground and laughed, "Mu Ya, they all say you were the least present person in the Mountain Peak Villa. That's not true. When I first joined the Mountain Peak Villa, Zhuozhi and Luo Yang both looked down on me. You were one of the few who supported me, and I remember it all. Your realm was low, and your military achievements were also low. Usually, you only drank Red Bamboo Wine, but this time is different. I'm filling yours to the brim with Purple Bamboo Wine. You were the second Rebirth Realm martial artist in our Mountain Peak Villa, a man of integrity, with brilliant military achievements. You deserve to drink the best wine in the world!"
At this point, Zhuozhi's tears streamed down her face.
Lin Zhao moved again, kneeling on one knee before Chu Yu's tomb. "Chu Yu, it would have been better if you hadn't led the Wandering Army to join the Snow Domain Legion back then. You would have been a woman of integrity in the Rebirth Realm, a leader in any faction. I'm sorry... I delayed you. But only someone like you could be worthy of being Chu Huaixi's daughter, right?"
Saying this, he offered a cup of wine.
Afterward, he held the wine jar and moved to Tang Guangjun's tomb. He looked at Tang Guangjun's gravestone, and Lin Zhao remained silent. He simply poured a bowl of wine onto the muddy ground. He thought for a moment, then poured another bowl, a total of three bowls for Tang Guangjun, before laughing, "You old drunkard, you love to drink. This time, drink to your heart's content. When you go to the underworld, there's no need to be timid. After all, you, Tang Guangjun, were a thirteenth-realm Military Sword Cultivator. With your Heaven-Ascending sword, you commanded respect throughout the world. Don't disgrace me, Lin Zhao, in the underworld. Be a heroic ghost even in death!"
Zhuozhi and Yu Wanling, though weeping, also showed a hint of a bitter smile. Lin Zhao truly faced everyone in the Mountain Peak Villa with his whole heart. This was perhaps why everyone was willing to die for him.
Finally, Lin Zhao, holding the wine jar, moved to Xiao Jiuer's tomb.
He held the wine jar, looked at the three characters "Su Qingjiu" on the gravestone, and could not utter a single word. He sat on the ground and wept uncontrollably, tears flowing endlessly.
...
The Upper Realm, Sunken Sword Mountain.
On the edge of a cliff, Su Qingjiu, who had grown into the appearance of a sixteen or seventeen-year-old girl, sat by the precipice, looking down at the scene in the back mountain of the Mountain Peak Villa in the lower realm. Seeing Lin Zhao weeping as if his heart were breaking, she held her knees and burst into sobs. No matter how Lin Qing'er comforted her, she could not stop her tears.
In the mortal world, it is mutual concern that is most moving.