Tome of Troubled Times

Chapter 438: Divine Brilliance Sect

Li Sian stared at the sky in amazement, feeling as though he had just slapped himself in the face.

Seriously, there really are people like this? Does he not have anything better to do?

Zhao Changhe sometimes thought that the Tome of Troubled Times existed solely to slap people in the face or indulge in some petty amusement by delivering news at just the right time. Its announcements did not necessarily come right when events concluded; it was as if it purposely waited for conversations to finish, and then it leisurely delivered a punchline.

Just like that time when Zhao Changhe underestimated his nephew, only for the Tome of Troubled Times to time its announcement perfectly, dropping in with a flourish—True character revealed amidst waves, a gentleman not to be constrained.

Li Sian had just mused about Han Wubing’s personal development, and now the Tome of Troubled Times revealed that Han Wubing was still very much the same. It completely fit Zhao Changhe’s view of the Tome of Troubled Times being rather mischievous.

But this time, Zhao Changhe felt proud. He had just affirmed his belief that Han Wubing was still the same, and it was even the Tome of Troubled Times that confirmed it.

This was not just a testament to his trust in his friend but also a reminder that the jianghu still had some flickers of bright spirit left—people like Yue Hongling and Han Wubing were proof of that.

Who said that you can’t remain youthful? Old Han isn’t young anymore~

Zhao Changhe uncorked his wine gourd, raised it to the sky, and shouted, “Thank you, brother!”

He then took a hearty swig and spurred his horse onward. “Let’s go. How much longer till we reach Emei? Can we make it there by tonight?”

Li Sian hurried to catch up. “The caravan’s slow. It’ll take a few days. If you ride ahead, you can make it by tomorrow. I’ll catch up with you at Emei.”

Zhao Changhe spurred his horse faster. “In that case, see you at Emei!”

Seeing Zhao Changhe suddenly all lively, as if he had been injected with pure energy, Li Sian could not help but smile and shake his head.

It’s only natural. If I had a trusted friend who did the same, my blood would also boil in my veins, and I’d surely want to down a cup of wine to celebrate.

* * *

For Zhao Changhe, he had always associated Emei with beautiful women.

After all, Emei was homophonous with “delicate eyebrows[1].” Whenever a sect based in Emei was mentioned in wuxia works, they were frequently portrayed as a female-only sect, featuring characters such as Guo Xiang and Zhou Zhirou[2].

Emei was also a Buddhist sacred land, so in those novels, the sect was often a religious sect as well, a monastery of nuns.

In this world, however, Emei had no connection to Buddhism. Instead, it was the home of the Divine Brilliance Sect, a sect focused on body tempering—a “monastery” of burly men. Paired with the name Emei, it felt like a strange contrast; Zhao Changhe really felt like things were out of place.

Back when he was still unfamiliar with the world, Zhao Changhe had no idea where the Divine Brilliance Sect was and assumed that Situ Xiao had to be a heroic figure from the north or something. Otherwise, when he first met Situ Xiao, he would have definitely asked a cheeky question like “When will those delicate eyebrows rise?”

Who knew if that would have earned him a beating.

Zhao Changhe arrived at the Divine Brilliance Sect by noon the next day. Despite it already being the beginning of summer, the heat was not felt here, and it was still as cool as spring.

Zhao Changhe had already removed his disguise as Wang Daozhong and returned to his true appearance. As he ascended the mountain path, he encountered many men traveling up and down. When they saw Zhao Changhe, they glared at him with eyes like those of a tiger, as if they were instinctively comparing their muscles to his, measuring who was stronger.

Since Zhao Changhe was still wearing the scholarly attire from his disguise as Wang Daozhong, his outfit was not the kind to show off his muscles. The men took a good look at him and ultimately concluded that their arms were probably thicker than his, so they nodded in satisfaction, puffed out their chests, and walked off confidently.

No one asked what Zhao Changhe was doing there; they were the very epitome of a laid-back attitude. After all, if someone intended to join the sect, the disciples at the gate would handle it. And if they were just sightseeing outside the mountain, what was the point in asking?

As for those who came to the Divine Brilliance Sect to cause trouble... nobody was stupid enough to do that. And even assuming there was someone who dared, it definitely would not be some young man like him. It would have to be Xia Longyuan himself or maybe the northern barbarians launching an invasion.

After all, the Divine Brilliance Sect was the number one sect in the world, and it had Li Shentong at the helm, fifth on the Ranking of Heaven. That reputation was no joke.

As Zhao Changhe reached the mountainside, he saw the sect’s main gate standing tall, with ancient, bold characters etched into it: Divine Brilliance.

This was a sect that traced its roots back to the ancients, and it was perhaps the only sect in the world known for body cultivation. The power of the physique—glorious and brilliant, with skin and flesh capable of withstanding swords and spears, and strength enough to bear the weight of massive boulders—appealed to the masculine ideal far more than the subtle arts of internal energy.

Well, the Blood God Cult could technically count as one that specialized in body cultivation, but it was far from being as famous as the Divine Brilliance Sect. While Cult Leader Xue was indeed somewhat renowned, it was not for any reason that could be seen as pleasant.

The disciples at the gate eyed Zhao Changhe as he approached, exchanged glances, and then stepped forward, bowing respectfully. “Are you, by any chance, Blood Asura Zhao Changhe?”

Zhao Changhe smiled and said, “I am. Is brother Situ here? I’ve come to visit him.”

“Uh... Senior Brother Situ isn’t in the sect right now. He’s off traveling, saying he couldn’t tolerate being outranked by someone who used to be weaker than him.”

“...You don’t have to tell me all that, you know.”

The disciple puffed out his chest. “Our senior brother has also broken through to the first layer of the Profound mysteries! He will settle this score with you in due time.”

“I don’t care how high he ranks. I mean, I’m not an idiot... Forget it.” Zhao Changhe sighed. “Is Sect Master Li here? I was tasked to bring him something on someone’s behalf.”

The disciple froze for a moment, his expression growing serious. Immediately, another disciple sprinted off to inform the sect master.

Before long, he came back, looking more respectful than before. “The sect master invites Young Hero Zhao to meet in the guest hall.”

As he spoke, the disciple’s demeanor had noticeably changed. To be personally received in the guest hall by the sect master was no small thing.

Is this really just some junior acquainted with our senior brother? It’s just too strange. Typically, even someone ranked in the top hundred in the world wouldn’t receive such treatment. Heck, even someone like Wang Daozhong might be turned away at the door.

Zhao Changhe just smiled and followed the disciple into the sect.

Along the way, shirtless men were everywhere, lifting heavy stones repeatedly. It made Zhao Changhe feel like he had stepped into an ancient version of a gym. However, he could not help but notice that, much like the Blood God Cult, there was not a single woman in sight.

It’s really strange. Aren’t men who train their bodies supposed to have excess energy to burn? Wouldn’t it make sense for them to need some balance, maybe even a bit of romance, to harmonize their yin and yang?

Perhaps being very experienced and knowing what guests are surprised by, the disciple leading the way smiled and said, “We don’t have women here, stop looking. What kind of woman would join this kind of sect and train her body to be all muscular?”

“Well, it’s not that there aren’t any... There are still some tough women in the world.”

“Well, the main reason is that we don’t want to carelessly lose our vital yang, as it seriously affects our body tempering. For the sake of keeping the atmosphere clean, the sect master simply doesn’t accept female disciples.”

“I see...” Zhao Changhe sighed, “What a pity, I thought Situ Xiao was quite debauched. But this is actually how it is? So, how do you guys release your energy?”

“Uh...”

“And doesn’t drinking too much alcohol affect you? I mean, I also drink a lot, but Situ Xiao is a drunkard through and through; isn’t that a bit bad?”

“At first, it was to relieve the pain from body tempering, but later it became an addiction... Anyway, with Senior Brother’s strength, alcohol no longer harms him. It doesn’t really matter at that level. Even our sect master loves drinking.”

“How awful...” Zhao Changhe increasingly felt that the Divine Brilliance Sect was, in essence, quite similar to the Blood God Cult.

As they were speaking, they arrived in front of the guest hall. Looking up, they saw a middle-aged man with a rustic appearance standing outside the hall with his hands behind his back, watching the bustling activity on the training ground in the distance.

It was the sect master of the Divine Brilliance Sect, Li Shentong.

Just from his appearance, Li Shentong did not not look much different from an old farmer. He was not handsome and could even be said to be somewhat ugly. His skin was bronze, his clothes plain, and his hands and feet were calloused. But his face lacked the wrinkles and worries of a farmer. His forehead was broad, and his eyes were majestic, making people forget his simple appearance and attire, leaving only an awe-inspiring aura that pierced into one’s soul.

When his eyes fell on Zhao Changhe, Zhao Changhe could not help but feel a chill run through his body, as if he were being stared at by a fierce tiger, just like when he had yet to even begin cultivating in the past.

Yuxu mentioned that Li Shentong is rather impulsive and has quite a temper. I wonder why he’s showing this temper toward a junior like me.

But Zhao Changhe did not avoid the intimidating gaze and met it calmly.

Under this invisible pressure, the disciple beside Zhao Changhe broke out in a cold sweat and hurriedly bowed before quickly retreating.

As the disciple withdrew, Li Shentong’s pressure suddenly dissipated, and he revealed a smile, though Zhao Changhe could not tell if it was really a smile. “Not bad, you’re a real man.”

Zhao Changhe said, “What’s the point of this show of power, senior?”

Li Shentong replied casually, “I just wanted to see what kind of opponent could make Situ Xiao so unsettled. Back in the day, when he was on the Ranking of Hidden Dragons, Situ Xiao scoffed at those ahead of him, whether it was Chi Li, Yue Hongling, or Cui Yuanyong. He’d either say that they were skinny monkeys or women, claiming he’d defeat them eventually. But now, when he mentions you, sometimes he calls you a fool with only a few moves, and other times he paces back and forth with a serious expression, saying he might not be able to handle you. I’ve never seen him like that.”

Zhao Changhe could not help but laugh. “That guy, I thought we were friends, but it turns out he’s been treating me as a rival this whole time.”

“For people like you, those who are worthy of becoming friends are usually rivals. When you were close to Yue Hongling and Cui Yuanyong, didn’t you ever want to surpass them?”

Zhao Changhe replied candidly, “Yes. And it was the same with Situ Xiao. Back at Langya, when he suppressed his power to fight me, I thought to myself that I would see to it that, one day, I beat him even if he doesn’t hold back.”

“See, that’s exactly it. It’s precisely because of that spirit, that honest and serious competition, that martial arts can flourish.” Li Shentong did not mind and turned to enter the hall. “Come in and sit... I heard you brought something for me?”

Zhao Changhe followed him in, took out a gourd of wine, and said, “This is from Kunlun four months ago. Senior Yuxu asked me to bring it to you, Sect Master Li.”

Li Shentong took the wine gourd, sat down, and, after examining it for a moment, smiled. “Did he have a message for me?”

Zhao Changhe answered honestly, “He said that after you drink it, he’ll see if you’re convinced or not”

As soon as the words left his mouth, he suddenly realized it.

The two of them are also secretly competing friends.

1. This is referring to how Emei (娥眉), the location, and delicate eyebrows (蛾眉), though this word can also refer to a beautiful woman. ☜

2. These are both characters created by Jin Yong (金庸), specifically found in The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber (倚天屠龍記). ☜