I Might Be a Big Shot — Chapter 19
When Changkong Zhuoyu heard the name Yin Changkong, his brow twitched, and he immediately asked, “Yin Changkong… how did Sect Master Yin go missing?”
At this moment, Changkong Zhuoyu was different from before — he exuded an imposing aura, as if he had merged with the towering and perilous Mount Shu, making it impossible to see through him.
As a rogue cultivator, Rong Jian was already proud to have reached Nascent Soul stage, which spoke of his outstanding talent. However, in front of Changkong Zhuoyu, he couldn’t muster a shred of resistance. Even his Thunder Lord's Hammer, which he had personally refined and which possessed an arrogant spirit of its own, obediently squinted and didn’t dare show the slightest defiance.
Rong Jian had originally thought Changkong Zhuoyu was at the Soul Transformation stage, but now it seemed he was most likely at the Great Ascension stage — and it was unclear whether he was righteous or evil.
Yet regardless of what identity or stance Changkong Zhuoyu held, Rong Jian had no ability to refuse him. Looking into his eyes, he couldn’t help but say, “No one really knows what happened. About a year ago, a streak of rosy light suddenly flashed across Kunlun Mountain. After that, the Kunlun Sect recalled all their disciples from their travels and shut themselves away. The Kunlun divine formation is fearsome — it’s the strongest among the ancient divine formations. No one dared to trespass, so the fact that the formation had been broken went unnoticed for over a year. It wasn’t until the Li family was mysteriously annihilated that the Emei elders divined that a great calamity had befallen the human world. They went to Kunlun to discuss how to resist the calamity with Sect Master Yin, only to learn that on the very night the Kunlun formation was breached, he too had disappeared.”
{Mount Emei, one of the Four Sacred Buddhist Mountains of China. Emei Sect is often depicted as a prestigious Daoist or Buddhist martial arts school, known for its formidable sword techniques and strong moral standing.}
“I see…” Changkong Zhuoyu suddenly tore off the mask on his face, and his dusty clothes turned back into white robes. Under Rang Cencen’s mesmerized gaze, he said righteously, “Since it’s a calamity upon the human world, Mount Shu must step up. We can no longer idle about. Let’s enter Mount Shu at once.”
Rong Jian was stunned. The contrast in Changkong Zhuoyu’s appearance was so great that he was momentarily dazzled, even his Thunder Lord's Hammer fell to the ground with a thud, rolling about as though it too had been awed by Changkong Zhuoyu’s beauty.
While Rang Cencen was mesmerized and Rong Jian dumbfounded, Changkong Zhuoyu walked over to Li Xinglun.
In this world, only Changkong Zhuoyu knew Li Xinglun’s true identity. Hearing Rong Jian mention the Li family’s disaster twice made Changkong Zhuoyu’s heart ache. He opened his arms and hugged Li Xinglun.
“Little Xing,” Changkong Zhuoyu transmitted his voice, “no matter who harmed your family, I will make sure they are damned for all eternity!”
The always carefree and capricious Changkong Zhuoyu spoke with such solemnity and determination for the first time. Li Xinglun’s frozen heart slowly warmed. He raised his hand and hugged Changkong Zhuoyu tightly. In this world, the only person he still cared about was Changkong Zhuoyu.
Changkong Zhuoyu was silly, showy, childish, prone to imagining himself a great figure, and always coming up with whimsical schemes… but none of that mattered. What mattered was that he was his master, the only person in the cultivation world with whom he had a bond.
To have been forced to take him as a master — how fortunate.
Li Xinglun pressed his lips to Changkong Zhuoyu’s shoulder, holding back tears.
In this warm embrace like gentle jade, he had no need to cry.
Rong Jian was utterly shocked. Did Changkong Zhuoyu reveal his true face just to hug his disciple? Why? And what exactly was the relationship between these two? Did that young master Pei just kiss Changkong Zhuoyu’s shoulder?
Li Xinglun’s sorrow was soothed in an instant. He raised his head and, seeing Rang Cencen’s indignant expression and Rong Jian’s gaping mouth, he knew their actions would arouse suspicion if not properly explained.
But Li Xinglun was no ordinary person — he had long been tempered by Changkong Zhuoyu’s storytelling at the bottom of the Soul-Breaking Gorge. He could turn a fan bought for a mere couple of silver coins into the legendary Dark Frost Underworld Fire Fan. This little problem was nothing to him.
He immediately adopted a wistful expression and rested his head on his master’s shoulder, saying gravely, “Master, I know — you are destined to save all beings. Our carefree days are over.”
Rong Jian’s face said: “What are you two even talking about?”
“Senior Rong, you might not know,” Li Xinglun sighed. “My master and I intended to wander the cultivation world leisurely, never meddling in worldly affairs again. My master’s past… ah, it’s better left unsaid. Suffice it to say, when he heard of the great calamity, he could not stand idly by. His path has always been to safeguard the world’s peace. We merely… merely lament that our tranquil days have ended so soon, and we’re to be swept into strife once more…”
He leaned sorrowfully on Changkong Zhuoyu’s shoulder again. Changkong Zhuoyu comfortingly patted his back. “Little Xing, don’t be afraid. I will protect you completely and not let you suffer a single injury.”
These words said everything yet nothing, enough for Rong Jian to fill in countless stories in his mind and to placate Rang Cencen.
Xue Qianjie restrained the demonic path two thousand years ago, bringing peace to the cultivation world for many years. He too must have been one who disliked conflict. Now, hearing that a calamity had descended, it was reasonable for him to act.
Sure enough, Rang Cencen was moved and fell to his knees with a thump. “Sect Master’s righteousness — no matter where you go or what you do, Cencen will follow you to the death!”
Rong Jian was still bewildered when he heard Changkong Zhuoyu say, “Since that’s the case, please lead the way and show us the path opened within the Mount Shu formation.”
Rong Jian felt he ought to be suspicious of these three. After all, Rang Cencen didn’t look like someone from the righteous sects at all — those snake patterns on her sleeves looked real, very much like someone from the Hundred Flowers sect. Though not demonic, the righteous sects never acknowledged those who used poison as righteous cultivators, leaving their status awkward. The righteous path instinctively regarded members of the Hundred Flowers sect as demonic.
But Changkong Zhuoyu’s aura was so overwhelming, his righteousness so absolute that it left no room for doubt. Pei Xingchen’s compassion and his ‘Master, do as you please; your disciple will always support you’ expression left Rong Jian without the courage to voice his doubts. In a daze, he led the three of them onward.
Even the Thunder Lord's Hammer he held remained quiet, without the slightest hint of warning.
That Thunder Lord's Hammer was no ordinary weapon; it could sense ill intent in others. Since it didn’t react, Rong Jian felt he should trust them this time.
And so the three of them… snuck into the Mount Shu Sect?
Of course, it wasn’t that simple.
As a rogue cultivator who had reached Nascent Soul stage, and possessing a pair of Thunder Lord's Hammers bound to his soul, Rong Jian was already a famed figure in the cultivation world — akin to a righteous wandering knight in the martial world. It was precisely because of his fame and strength that he’d received a hero’s invitation from Mount Shu, allowing him to enter the Mount Shu sword formation. But the three who accompanied him had no such invitation; the path simply wasn’t open to them.
“This…” Rong Jian looked awkward. The invitation bore his spiritual imprint and couldn’t be transferred. Only he could enter, while his three companions were barred by the formation.
“Fellow Daoist Rong, don’t mind,” Changkong Zhuoyu said breezily, waving his paper fan. “You just stand aside and watch — this is a good chance to test the fan.”
Li Xinglun: “….”
Master, please stop. We just managed to cover up your nonsense about the fan, and now you’re going to give yourself away! Even if your cultivation is unmatched, how could that ordinary paper fan withstand your true essence? The moment you channel your energy, it’ll be ruined!
But Changkong Zhuoyu didn’t notice the meaning in Li Xinglun’s gaze. He suddenly took out the sword tassel Li Xinglun had woven for him earlier and attached it to the fan as a pendant.
Li Xinglun: “….”
The red cord was part of Changkong Zhuoyu’s mysterious immortal or divine garment. Of course, it could withstand his terrifying true essence. It radiated dazzling white light, and with the tassel, the fan flew into the sky.
Changkong Zhuoyu struck a pose and shouted: “Rise, slash!”
The fan turned into a streak of rainbow light and slashed viciously at the Mount Shu sword formation.
Immediately, a chilling murderous aura rushed toward the four of them. Rong Jian, with his invitation, felt little pressure, but Rang Cencen and Li Xinglun could not withstand it — especially Li Xinglun, who coughed up blood on the spot.
Seeing this, Changkong Zhuoyu immediately swung his wooden sword, carving a fissure into the mountain between them and the formation.
Then he stabbed the wooden sword into the rock, and vast true essence madly drew upon Mount Shu’s spiritual energy of heaven and earth, forcefully creating a barrier before them that held back the formation’s pressure.
Facing the terrifying might of heaven and earth, Changkong Zhuoyu swept his sleeve and said with elegance and arrogance, “With me here, you will not harm them in the slightest.”
The Mount Shu sword formation was clearly enraged. Tens of thousands of sword shadows descended like a storm. Changkong Zhuoyu reached into the air and caught the ‘Dark Frost Underworld Fire Fan’. With the fan open, he casually waved it and blocked the sword shadows.
He folded the fan, swinging it like a sword. His figure became a white blur, and amid a crisp ringing, all the sword shadows fell to the ground. He stood alone, fan in hand, proudly facing the Mount Shu formation.
A deep, solemn sword ringing was heard without stopping, as immense pressure swept over the. Even with the hero’s invitation, Rong Jian couldn’t withstand this divine power.
The Purple and Azure Twin Swords! They had been roused by Changkong Zhuoyu.
Two beams of light shot into the sky from deep within Mount Shu. Twin dragons of purple and azure coiled before Changkong Zhuoyu, letting out long, resonant roars.
Yet Changkong Zhuoyu, holding a paper fan worth a couple of silver coins, faced the two fiercest, most powerful swords in heaven and earth, and with just a single, light slash of the fan, he cleaved apart the entwined dragons.
“Step aside. I am ascending Mount Shu,” Changkong Zhuoyu said coldly.
The two dragons, forced apart, raised their heads and let out a long cry before coiling back together and returning to Mount Shu.
The might of the Mount Shu sword formation abruptly dissipated, revealing before them a golden avenue leading straight to the Mount Shu Sect’s main hall.
Li Xinglun, Rang Cencen, Rong Jian: “…”
~ Chapter End ~
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