Ze Tian Ji (Way of Choices)

Translated by: Hypersheep325

Edited by: Michyrr

After a very long time had passed, or so it seemed to Chen Changsheng at any rate, that head manager from the Pavilion of Divination finally shifted his gaze away from the sheath, turning to him and chuckling.

Chen Changsheng did not know if there was some deeper meaning behind this laugh, but he could only hope that there was not.

The manager's hand caressed the sheath, sighing, "Ah, an excellent object."

Tang Thirty-Six naturally knew that this sheath was an excellent object.

Any sort of spatial artifact would be able to become the most precious treasure of an ordinary sect or school.

This sheath of Chen Changsheng's had once poured out a mountain of swords in the library, and that might not have even been everything inside it. From this, one could speculate as to how massive the space within was.

In the continent, whether it was for comparing cultivators against each other or evaluating whether magical artifacts were good or bad, the Pavilion of Divination was assuredly the best choice, or else those famous Proclamations would not have such great credibility. Tang Thirty-Six knew that this head manager had come to see the Stainless Sword, but he also didn't want to pass on the opportunity to have the sheath evaluated as well. He probed, "How excellent is it?"

The head manager solemnly declared, "Extremely excellent."

Chen Changsheng almost broke into a laugh at these words, his nervousness somewhat relieved. Tang Thirty-Six was rather depressed, thinking to himself, this head manager's level of shamelessness when speaking is really equal to mine. He said irritatedly, "Is it excellent enough to be listed on the Tier of Legendary Weapons?"

These words were just something he had said in anger, but to his surprise, that head manager put on a solemn expression as he carefully considered the question before finally shaking his head.

Tang Thirty-Six was somewhat satisfied and also somewhat disappointed.

But it was at this moment when the head manager spoke, "I remember that this sheath has always been on the Tier of Legendary Weapons. It naturally doesn't need to be listed in it again."

The library was exceptionally quiet.

Tang Thirty-Six glanced at Chen Changsheng, Mo Yu glanced at the sheath, and Chen Changsheng didn't know where he should be glancing.

"This is the Vault Sheath." The manager lightly rapped against the sheath, listening to the heavy yet unmuffled noise. He sighed, "It has also been twenty-some years since I last saw it."

Although Mo Yu had her conjectures on this matter, her expression still flickered. She asked, "This is the Vault Sheath that was once kept in the Li Palace?"

The head manager did not immediately answer her question. Instead, with a solemn expression, he pulled the dagger out of the sheath.

Staring at the dagger, he slowly spoke, "If it were not the Vault Sheath, how could it hold such an incomparably sharp double-edged sword?"

The evaluation of 'incomparably sharp' was often heard, but when this evaluation came from the Pavilion of Divination famed for its rigor, it gained an incredibly extraordinary and distinct flavor.

This evaluation indicated that the sharpness of Chen Changsheng's dagger was truly unrivaled. The Pavilion of Divination believed that solely on the sharpness of this dagger, there was no divine weapon in the world that could exceed it.

This dagger had a very unremarkable appearance. Chen Changsheng had never paid much attention maintaining it, barely even wiping it a few times. However, it was plain to see that there were no stains upon the body of the dagger, not even a speck of dust. In Chen Changsheng's hands, this sword had killed no small number of people, soaked in no small amount of blood, yet no blood could be seen.

"The sword is called Stainless, and it truly is stainless," the manager sighed.

This dagger was far too sharp, so its surface was incomparably smooth. It could pass through innumerable flowers and not carry away the slightest fragrance, enter the mortal world and not stir its red dust, pierce through all things and yet not disturb them!

Mo Yu looked at Chen Changsheng and asked, "What is this sword made of?"

In order to make a sword so sharp, it didn't just require an incredibly high level of forging. Most importantly, the sharpness of a sword depended on what it was made of.

Only the densest and toughest, and simultaneously the most flexible of materials, unafraid of both high and low temperatures, could bear such thorough tempering.

Chen Changsheng shook his head. He truly did not know what this dagger was made of. Then he, Mo Yu, and Tang Thirty-Six all turned to that head manager.

The head manager shook his head, saying in a chilly voice, "This matter cannot be spoken, or else the thunder above the nine heavens will crash, and the fates of both the one who spoke of it and the one who wields the sword will encounter a terrible danger."

What Tang Thirty-Six loathed the most was this way of using profound mystery to lord over others. He thought to himself, the Pavilion of Divination just loves to act as gods and play as devils.

After viewing the sword, the head manager left before Mo Yu, saying that it was in order to prepare, after so many years, to change the rankings of the Tier of Legendary Weapons.

Mo Yu did not leave. She looked at Chen Changsheng and said, "The Vault Sheath is the treasure of the Li Palace. Back then, your master stole it away. Why are you just carrying it with you? It seems somewhat inappropriate."

Chen Changsheng thought to himself, before today, only His Holiness saw through the origins of this sheath. As long as you don't spread it around, just who would think it inappropriate?

"Firstly, my master was once Principal of the Orthodox Academy, the senior brother of His Holiness, and also a successor to the old school of the Orthodoxy. Even if it was just splitting up family property, he would still have the qualifications to take some things from the Li Palace."

He continued, "Secondly, if you think it inappropriate, I can go today to the Li Palace and return it to His Holiness and then request that he bestow it back to me, but…don't you think all those actions are unnecessary?"

Mo Yu seemed as if she was gazing at a stranger. Arching her brows, she said, "Today, your words are much sharper than your incomparably sharp sword…this isn't at all like your regular self."

Chen Changsheng replied, "Perhaps it's because I've been honing the sword more recently."

Mo Yu knew that he was speaking of those things that had been occurring in front of the Orthodox Academy recently. After examining him for a while, she declared, "Not bad, you truly are much stronger than you were a while ago."

Given his successive battles with initial level Star Condensation experts and then his guiding of the new students in fighting opponents who were far above them in strength, Chen Changsheng had spoken correctly. This process had been too arduous. It was like using countless big stones and small stones, round stones and square stones, to hone his own sword. As long as this sword did not snap, it would inevitably become ever sharper.

From the Mausoleum of Books to the Garden of Zhou, from Xunyang City to the capital, all the good fortune he had encountered and all the things he had comprehended were being incessantly hammered and burned in this process. All the impurities were being squeezed out or heated into smoke to vanish without a trace. Only the purest portion was left behind, ultimately becoming his own strength and cultivation, never to be lost.

Chen Changsheng truly had gotten much stronger. If he were to battle again with Divine General Xue He or Liang Hongzhuang, he would be almost certain to win.

"But all of this has no meaning."

Mo Yu calmly smiled at him, "Because she is about to return."

"Everyone is telling me that she is about to return."

Chen Changsheng seriously replied, "But in truth, I believe that this also has no meaning."

Mo Yu replied, "You are the future Pope and she has become the Holy Maiden. If you lose at her hand, what sort of voice do you think you will hear from within the Orthodoxy?"

This matter involved the competition between the northern and southern factions of the Orthodoxy that had persisted for a thousand years. Although the fact that Xu Yourong had been born in the capital meant that the conflict between the two sides had been less intense, Chen Changsheng knew that Mo Yu's words had not been exaggerated. After a long silence, he asked with complex emotions, "Do we have to fight?"