Sword Among Us c1-1268
Page 206
*****
Within a single day, various heroes from all around the world of martial artists gathered in Mount Huangshan. Anyone would be able to see from the distance that the martial artists who gathered there because of the news filled the government-made roads, and the crowd was becoming denser…
When the newcomers were still so far away that they could only see the outline of Mount Huangshan, they found that the area was already crowded!
"There are so many people in the area!"
A man and a woman rode on Hoof Shadows that caused the people in the game to regard them with envy. The two wore Bamboo Hat, but onlookers could see that the man was handsome, while the woman was graceful. Their bearing and temperament were outstanding, and soon, they attracted a lot of gazes from those on the government-made road.
However, there were quite a lot of people who had Hoof Shadows on the government-made road.
Breathtaking and alluring ladies as well as graceful swordsmen arrived all the time.
Occasionally, a group of enthusiastic and arrogant martial artists could be seen tugging at their reins as they held their weapons and left with a roar and astonishing momentum.
"There are plenty of disciples from the six system-allocated sects who will surround and attack Light Summit. There are also plenty of heroes from the game who have come here. This will be an unprecedentedly grand sight. I suspect that we should not head to places with a lot of people later.
"We should be able to find places with few people in front." Momo turned her head around, and through the white veil obscuring her face, she saw the curve of Happy's lips under the Bamboo Hat. It puzzled her. "Are you thinking that we shouldn't head up ahead?"
"Of course not." Happy smiled and raised his chin to gesture at the vague outline of Mount Huangshan that was covered in the clouds. "If we head forward, we will arrive at the gathering place of the masters from the six great system-allocated sects," he said firmly. "No outsider is allowed to get close to them. We should go there. There aren't many people over there."
"If we are not allowed to get close to the places where the six sects are gathered, what's the point of us coming over?"
Momo was stunned, but she did not suspect Happy's words. She put away her Hoof Shadow and activated her lightness skill to rush after Happy. At that moment, moving with their feet would be faster than moving on four legs.
The distance between people on the government-made road was small, which was why quite a number of people heard Happy's words.
When they saw the man and woman with the outstanding presence head into the crowd with an astonishing speed, they were instantly interested and quickly followed them.
But soon, they realized that the distance between them was constantly widening.
In almost no time, they lost sight of the pair.
But that only made those people even more certain of what they thought. They felt that the man and woman should know something. After all, the gathering place of the six great system-allocated sects was not a secret. Once the players became certain of their direction, they did not give up and continued moving forward.
*****
It was the entrance to Mount Huangshan. If one headed forward any further, they would arrive at the defense line set up by the headquarters of Ming Cult. The six great system-allocated sects had set up camp at that place.
If one looked forward, they would find more than two thousand disciples in different uniforms in the area. The distribution of their camps was very clear because of the way they stood. A group of monks, nuns, Taoists, and swordsmen who seemed to have outstanding statuses stood in a circle at the center of the region. They seemed to be discussing something.
The disciples of the six great system-allocated sects also drew a defense line beyond the empty area. They stood as a wall at the periphery with a group of martial artists who talked incessantly with each other.
Those martial artists were great talents who had come from all over the place. They served as mobs in the Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber. In truth, they had decent abilities. The veins at their temples could be seen, and the weakest among them was also at Life and Death Realm.
"Stay where you are." When Happy dragged Momo over to the place he had chosen, he was immediately blocked by a person with a sword. "Boy, don't be reckless. The area ahead is the place where the teachers of the six great system-allocated sects rest. The six great teachers have already given orders that we will attack Light Summit after four hours. Now, you will all wait at the foot of the mountain."
The people beside the speaker did not seem to have seen anything. They continued to speak to each other while indifferent to the situation, but at the same time, they watched with cool detachment.
Happy did not stop moving. He bypassed the person and continued heading forward.
The speaker was frustrated. He positioned his longsword horizontally, and with agile movements, he moved in front of Happy.
"Hey, brat, are you deaf?!"
Momo was alarmed. She quickly tugged Happy's sleeve from behind him. After all, they faced NPCs belonging to the righteous sects.
Happy ignored Momo's tiny action. He lifted his sword without drawing it out from his sheath and easily parried thelongsword.
"Ack!"
The speaker grew even more frustrated after that. He spun his longsword and instinctively sent a layer of sword light over.
Dragon Capture!
The man's weapon instantly appeared in Happy's hands. He drew his Noble Sword and placed it across the speaker's neck. When he spoke, his tone was cold, "Friend, you are not a disciple of the six sects, and neither am I a disciple of the six sects. I don't seem to recall having to listen to you—"
"Amitabha! Swordsman, please show mercy." Before Happy could finish speaking, the crowd suddenly parted. A Shaolin disciple walked over with a smile and with his hands pressed together. "The abbot from my humble sect wishes to invite you forward so that he can talk to you!"
Under the dumbfounded and shocked gazes of the group of players and Momo, who were all behind him, Happy resolutely put his sword back into its sheath. He wrapped his fist in his palm without arrogance or humility and said, "Please lead the way."
He then led Momo into the camp of the six great system-allocated sects with the Shaolin disciple.
Chapter 406 - Join Emei
While countless players waited for the moment to attack Light Summit, the news of a man and woman who had been invited inside by the master of Shaolin Temple suddenly came from the area ahead. It instantly caused the crowd to burst into a commotion. Countless people tried to find out the details of what happened.
There were also people who had the idea of imitating Happy. They wanted to attack the martial artists at the defense line to get near the frontlines beforehand and obtain the chance to get close to the teachers of the six great system-allocated sects!
However, many people found themselves getting slapped in the face by their own actions.
The martial artist NPCs in front were all elites with extraordinary abilities. Even Happy could not have been able to get through if he did not have a great understanding of the various martial arts and their associated skills as well as using Dragon Capture to swiftly suppress his enemy.
Because the quest for the final battle at Light Summit should have only appeared half a year later, there were quite a number of outstanding players in Happy's previous life who had been arrogant and used their abilities to instantly suppress the NPCs. They triggered the quest to attack Light Summit together with the six sects and protect the six teachers from those sects.
There had been plenty of great players at that time.
However, right then, people's act of recklessly attacking the NPC elites outside the defense line only made them humiliate themselves.
"Get lost!"
When a Life and Death Realm player was just about to attack, he did not expect that his opponent would suddenly switch tactics at the last moment an
d turn his slash into a pull. The player's balance was instantly destroyed, and his body fell forward against his will. The NPC turned around and kicked his c.h.e.s.t. The Life and Death Realm player grunted, and he immediately flew more than thirty feet away.
"You're thinking about heading forward with just this bit of strength? Leave this place and stay there."
The player felt so embarrassed that he wanted to die. He returned to the crowd and vanished.
This sort of situation appeared everywhere.
Even some of the famous players in the game and some of the powerful players on the Dragon and Phoenix Rank were not summoned because they were engaged in a fierce fight. In fact, even after they defeated their opponents, they did not manage to attract the attention of the teachers from the six great system-allocated sects.
Instead, some unfamiliar faces with outstanding presence suppressed their opponents within just a few moves. They were summoned by Wudang Sect, Emei Sect, and Mount Hua Sect.
Soon, many players gradually gave up on the shred of hope.
Suppressing a Life and Death Realm player within a short moment was something impossible for them, unless their personal abilities surpassed those of an average person.
*****
Under the lead of the Shaolin monk, Happy and Momo moved through the defense line formed by the disciples of the six great system-allocated sects. They arrived at the place countless players wanted to go—the place where the teachers of the six sects gathered.
"Abbot…"
The monk called out the name of Buddha, stood up, turned around, and revealed a kind and honest smile at the young man who was not too far from him. "Heroes always come from among youngsters. Young swordsman, you are young, but you have outstanding abilities. I do wonder, who is your teacher?"
Happy wrapped his fist in his palm and answered, "I am Happy of the Murong Clan. Greetings, Abbot of Shaolin Temple!"
The abbot from Shaolin Temple was stunned. "I see, so you are a disciple of a famous clan. I have been disrespectful." After he said those words, the expressions of the other teachers also grew attentive.
"The Murong Clan does indeed show concern to the world of martial artists. I, Annihilation, must personally go and visit the Old Murong someday later." Emei Sect's Mistress Annihilation smiled, even though she usually had a cold and arrogant countenance.
Happy naturally knew that those were just courteous words. He politely answered, and his actions were neither arrogant nor humble.
He did not have a lot of fondness for Mistress Annihilation. However, he paid some attention to the cold, charming, and alluring disciple beside Mistress Annihilation.
She was Zhou Zhiruo!
Zhou Zhiruo was one of the best disciples in Emei Sect. She was smart, and she was used to seeing all sorts of young heroes from various sects, so she did not seem to be very interested in Happy. She just stood behind Mistress Annihilation obediently. The other two female Emei Sect disciples curiously regarded Happy and Momo with slight disdain.
Song Qingshu of Wudang Sect completely ignored Happy. He just stared at Zhou Zhiruo with sparkling eyes. Great Swordsman Song from Wudang Sect felt very resigned in regards to that.
"Happy, since you're a disciple of the famous Murong Clan, it means that you have extraordinary abilities. Why don't you follow us when we become the first batch to attack Light Summit later? You can also make Murong Clan happy and proud of you. What do you say?" The person who spoke was an elder from Kongtong Sect. The teachers from the other sects looked over at him with attentive expressions.
The system's notification arrived.
"Ding!
"Will you accept the quest and follow the disciples of the six great system-allocated sects to attack Light Summit?"
"I will show my respect to you by accepting your request," Happy agreed to it resolutely.
"Good! If we have such a courageous young man with us, why should we be worried that we cannot destroy this evil cult?!" A hint of gentleness appeared on Mistress Annihilation's cold face. She smiled and said, "But since you do not belong to any of the six sects, it would be better if we assign you to one of the sects so that we can take care of each other when you follow us. How about this? Which sect would you like to join?"
Happy was not surprised by this at all.
The quest itself had not changed much from his previous life. Once a player received the acknowledgment from the teachers of the six sects, that player had to follow a sect before they could obtain detailed subquests.
Happy pondered for a while before he quickly cast a glance at Zhou Zhiruo.
"I have looked up to the six sects in admiration for a long time. It would be very difficult for me to make a decision within a short period of time, so how about this: Since you are the one who issued the task to attack Light Summit, my friend and I will just follow the group from Emei Sect, teacher of Emei Sect."
"As expected of a disciple of the Murong Clan. Haha! As expected, you are very good with your words. Very well, mistress, this young swordsman will follow Emei Sect." Great Swordsman Song of Wudang Sect laughed heartily.
Mistress Annihilation clearly had an incredibly good impression of Happy. Even though her sect was filled with female disciples, she immediately made her decision.
"Alright. Zhiruo, you will be the host for this young friend of ours from Murong Clan." Mistress Annihilation turned her head around. "Tell him some of the matters related to our mission this time, especially the situation with this evil cult's Five Banner Division."
When Zhou Zhiruo heard her master's words, she finally raised her head and looked over. She cast a glance at Happy and Momo before she answered obediently, "Yes, master."
Happy moved over to Emei Sect with a natural and graceful poise. Momo followed behind him, but she did notice that his gaze was fixed on Zhou Zhiruo most of the time.
"I will have to trouble you, Miss Zhou." The duo sat down beside Zhou Zhiruo.
A light breeze c.a.r.e.s.sed her dark hair, and an aroma that refreshed minds wafted into Happy's nose from Zhou Zhiruo's body. Even though he knew that she was an NPC, he could not help but be charmed by her bearing.
Right then, Zhou Zhiruo was still a kind junior sister who was obedient to her mistress, respectful toward her senior sisters, and a very obedient member of Emei Sect. If she had not been sandwiched in between her heartless mistress and the irresolute Zhang Wuji, which forced her personality to change drastically because of all sorts of persecutions, she would actually have been a very good woman.
Speaking of which, Zhou Zhiruo had a weak personality because of her humble background, but she did not have anyone to talk to, and she was very pitiful. Then, because of many reasons serving as impetus, a tragedy had happened.
Happy had quite a lot of compassion toward this woman who was regarded as someone vile and sinister by many people.
Chapter 407 - Blood Robes’ Scheme
"Since you've decided to join Emei Sect's group, you must pay attention to a few things."
Zhou Zhiruo spoke very gently and softly. Even though her gaze was not on Happy and Momo's faces, no matter how they looked at her perfect side profile, they only saw an extraordinary sight. She was pleasant to the eyes, and they only felt a slight bit of discomfort because of her not looking at them.
"There are only female disciples in Emei Sect, so there will be a great deal of difficulties if we move with you. But when we attack Light Summit, we won't have so many taboos we need to pay attention to. We can take care of each other and work together. Try to make sure that you kill while protecting yourself. This is what my master usually teaches us."
Happy and Momo said nothing.
"The disciples from the branches of the cult are not hard to deal with. I heard that their strongest are the disciples from Five Banner Division, and they're very troublesome."
While Zhou Zhiruo explained the situation to Happy and Momo, a few other players were led among them, and they instantly caught Happy's att
ention, because they were all unfamiliar faces.
Happy swept his gaze over them and nodded at them in greeting before he looked away.
Those people were rather uneasy because it was the first time they met the teachers of the six great system-allocated sects. When they answered, they were obviously not as forthright and powerful in their words as Happy. The teachers from the six great system-allocated sects only exchanged a few sentences with them indifferently before they asked them to choose their sects.
Those people chose their sects with ulterior motives, so there were sects that were left behind and not chosen, but the teachers from the sects who were not chosen did not feel that it was a problem. However, the elders and disciples who were part of the higher level management could not help but feel a little indignant.
There was one player who attracted Happy attention and made him wary when he did not choose Shaolin Temple or Wudang Sect but instead came straight to Emei Sect.
"Brother, good day to you."
When he saw that the person had taken the initiative to greet him, Happy knew that it was not good for him to be too indifferent. He nodded to return the greeting.
He remembered that this polite young man said that he came from Snow Mountain Faction, and if he remembered correctly, Snow Mountain Faction was a small faction. However, Snow Mountain Divine Sword was an amazing martial art. Could he be the successor of his faction?
"I am Ancient Wind of Snow Mountain Faction. I still have not gotten your names."
Before Zhou Zhiruo could say anything, Ancient Wind could tell that the two next to her should be the first elites to have entered the sights of the teachers from the six great system-allocated sects. He thus immediately had the idea to become friends with them.
"My friend's Momo, and I'm Happy."
When Ancient Wind heard Happy introduce Momo, he put on a contemplative expression, as if he was trying to link her name to the names on the various ranking boards, which was why when he heard Happy introduce himself, he hesitated for a few seconds before he quickly came to a realization, and shock appeared on his face.