Chapter 378. Three Mountain Sword Sects Alliance (1)

The news of the Five Mountain Sword Sects Alliance’s betrayal made the upper leadership of the Martial Alliance break out in cold sweat.

It seemed like summer had just begun, but it already felt like midsummer.

Thinking about it, the betrayal had happened a while ago.

While the Sword God Zhou Xuchuan was away in the North Sea, the

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was unusually calm. It was like the calm before the storm.

Both the Righteous and Evil Alliance and the Dark Heavens Association were busy reorganizing. Still, they continued to engage in an invisible war, carrying out espionage and secret operations in the shadows.

“Unsettling movements in Shaanxi?”

At first, it was just a rumor. They couldn’t act on unclear information.

They had no choice but to keep watch until the situation became clearer.

Then, something happened. It was the traitors from the minor sects of the Righteous Faction.

"Hmph. It's a problem to be too famous, too."

"Especially in the current situation."

The betrayal of the small and medium-sized sects in the Righteous Faction was a result of the irrationality within the

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. As discontent with the privileged class grew, the Mount Hua Sect, whose popularity had recently skyrocketed, stood out.

In addition, betrayals had been breaking out all over the Central Plains and other regions, causing headaches for everyone involved.

“We're short on hands...”

The Martial Alliance was so overwhelmed that they barely had a moment to breathe after losing their headquarters in Hefei.

It would have been ideal if the Mount Hua Sect had been able to handle the issue themselves, but the traitorous forces were larger than expected.

“We will aid them.”

The Five Mountain Sword Sects Alliance stepped forward.

“Shouldn’t we help each other, as members of the Five Mountain Sword Sects Alliance?”

If the Mount Heng Sect, who usually treated the Mount Hua Sect as an enemy, had made this statement, the upper leadership of the Martial Alliance would have been suspicious. However, the Mount Song Sect and the Mount Tai Sect had spoken up first, with the Hengshan Sect and the Mount Heng Sect eventually following suit. With that, they were entrusted with the task.

Thus, the Five Mountain Sword Sects Alliance organized reinforcements and sent them to Shaanxi, which relieved the other forces of the Martial Alliance from their burden.

However, that was a mistake. An astounding Three of the Mountain Sword Sects had betrayed the alliance and the Righteous Faction, subduing the Mount Hua Sect and the Hengshan Sect who had come to greet them.

***

With the Mount Hua Sect as the leader, the Mount Song Sect, Mount Tai Sect, Hengshan Sect, and Mount Heng Sect were commonly called the Five Mountain Sword Sects Alliance.[1]

Among the martial arts sects that had appeared and disappeared over time, they were one of the few with a long-standing history, and were famous members of the Righteous Faction, with widely recognized reputations.

As the name 'Sword Sect' suggested, after their formation, they only focused on sharpening their swords. They were respected as masters of the sword by the Righteous Faction, while their archrival, the Evil Faction, often called them perverts who quenched their lust for swords through their cultivation.

That just went to show that they were some of the best swordsmen throughout the

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.

Regardless, this was why the Five Mountain Sword Sects Alliance had such great influence in the Righteous Faction

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, second only to the Nine Sects and One Gang or the Five Great Ancient Families. Before the corruption of the previous generation and the civil war, the Five Mountain Sword Sects Alliance would often host martial arts competitions and banquets to display their friendship.

However, their friendship wasn't as deep as it appeared.

At some point, the unity of the Five Mountain Sword Sects Alliance began to weaken. Ironically, their long history, or rather the passage of time, became the problem.

"Have you gone mad?!" shouted She Teng (攝藤), the strongest expert of the Five Mountain Sword Sects Alliance, from the Hengshan Sect, and one of the One Hundred Experts Under Heaven.

He tried to draw his sword, but bound by ropes, he was unable to break free.

"We haven't gone crazy, Ape Arm Sword (猿臂劍).”

Three swordsmen stood before She Teng’s bewildered gaze.

"The representative sects of the Righteous Faction, second only to the Nine Sects and One Gang and the Five Great Ancient Families, have betrayed the Righteous Faction. If that’s not madness, then what is?!”

She Teng shouted until his throat felt raw.

"The crazy one is the

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," a middle-aged man with a thin figure and a unibrow answered.

He was tall and thin, with narrow wrists that resembled bracken shoots under his sleeves, giving him a reed-like appearance. However, his aura was as sharp as a treasure-grade sword. It felt as though even getting close would slice one apart.

“That's right," added an old swordsman with gray hair and eyebrows. Despite his age, his body was large and heavily muscled.

His thick eyebrows, sharp jaw, and tightly closed lips gave him a stubborn look.

His shoulders were broad, his limbs thick like logs. Although of average height, his massive frame made him appear even larger.

"One Hundred and Eighty Nine Paths (一八九路) Mount Tai Sect's Sword (泰山破劍)...”

She Teng trailed off as he looked at the two men, then shifted his gaze to the beautiful middle-aged woman standing between them and continued.

“Chaoyi Shitai (超跇師太)!”

They were the sect masters of the Mount Song Sect, the Mount Tai Sect, and the Mount Heng Sect respectively.

Three Sect Masters of the Five Mountain Sword Sects Alliance had gathered in one place.

The problem was that their goal wasn't friendship.

“Ape Arm Sword. I’ll give you another chance, so listen carefully and make your decision.”

The Sect Master of the Mount Heng Sect, Chaoyi Shitai, had a cold gaze.

“What do you think is the reason so many have left the Martial Alliance, or rather the Righteous Faction, throughout the

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?”

“...”

“It’s because they have grown tired of the unreasonable monopoly held by the vested interests of the

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, including the Nine Sects and One Gang and the Five Great Ancient Families, and of the discrimination against the weak.”

The wrinkles around her eyes slowly narrowed.

“If you’re not one of the Nine Sects and One Gang or the Five Great Ancient Families, no matter how skilled you are, you will never be properly recognized. On the other hand, if you belong to one of them, you are treated well regardless of your martial arts achievements or character, no matter how trashy you are. That’s the current

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and society.”

She Teng remained silent, waiting for her to continue.

"Aren't the Five Mountains... no, the Four Mountains, excluding Mount Hua Sect, also victims of this twisted

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?”

Chaoyi Shitai’s eyes burned coldly.

“All this time, the Four Mountain Sword Sects have worked day and night to attain the highest honor since the founding of our sects, but the results have never been favorable. The head of the Five Mountain Sword Sects Alliance remains Mount Hua Sect, and all competitions and conferences are still held at Mount Hua Sect. Do you know why?”

Crack.

“The reason is simple. It’s because Mount Hua Sect is part of the Nine Sects and One Gang.”

Hatred and anger boiled inside her eyes.

"They were chosen as the head of the Five Mountain Sword Sect Alliance simply because they were one of the fourteen pillars of the Martial Alliance. Not only that, but they have treated the rest of us as subordinates, which is absolutely unforgivable.”

The problem for a long time was the monopoly of the privileged class, the center of the Righteous Faction

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.

Except for Mount Hua Sect, while the Five Mountain Sword Sects Alliance had enough power and influence, they were never truly included in the privileged class.

To put it simply, the three Sword Mountains had long wished to become the head of the Alliance or rise to an equal position, and their dissatisfaction only grew as that never happened.

Over time, that dissatisfaction accumulated, eventually corrupting the leadership across generations and spiraling out of control.

The Mount Heng Sect’s dissatisfaction reached its peak, especially since it was founded by a nun who had once been an excommunicated disciple of Mount Hua Sect.

“There's only one way to change this rotten and distorted

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. Just as the Juvenile Fist Emperor overthrew the Martial Alliance, we too must reform and rectify these wrongs. Isn’t that right, Southern Mountain's First Sword (南嶽第一劍)?”[2]

Chaoyi Shitai held out her hand to She Teng.

She Teng stared at the hand quietly, then raised his head and responded.

“You crazy bitch!”

Chaoyi Shitai’s face twisted like that of a demon.

“I agree that the

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is distorted, but you chose the wrong method. What you chose now is like joining hands with the Demon Cult simply because you lack strength.”

“Watch your mouth!”

The Mount Tai Sect’s Sword's face flushed red and blue in an instant.

"Does reform mean joining hands with those who hide in the shadows of the

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, who use their cunning tongues to deceive people’s hearts and even commit massacres? When did the Five Mountain Sword Sects Alliance sink this low?”

She Teng glared at the three swordsmen, his eyes filled with contempt.

“Don’t rationalize your greed, Three Mountains.”

The Southern Mountain's First Sword, the Ape Arm Sword, snorted and continued to speak.

“The reason Mount Hua Sect remains the head of the Alliance is simply because they are that powerful. They have produced elites like the Plum Blossom Swordsman and countless Absolute Masters of the Empyrean Overlords. Think carefully about why Mount Hua Sect is known as the greatest sword sect along with Wudang Sect.”

The Hengshan Sect also had complaints, but they still abided by the law of power, accepting the circumstances even though they disliked them.

"What, why don’t you just say outright that we did not try hard enough?"

The One Hundred and Eighty Nine Paths asked, his voice murderous, as though ready to cut She Teng down at any moment.

“One Hundred and Eighty Nine Paths. Don’t you think you’re too old to talk about ideals or dreams?”

She Teng looked at One Hundred and Eighty Nine Paths and asked another question.

“The world of the

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is neither a martial paradise nor a heavenly one. Isn’t it a world where strength, or rather, the difference in one's martial skills, is what gives you power?”

She Teng’s words carried several meanings.

“As you all said, the world of the

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, or rather this society itself, is flawed. Even if it’s power, if you ignore the irrationality of strength, then what they do is a problem. But even so, joining hands with a genocidal faction and betraying our allies is insanity.”

“She Teng!”

Shing!

The One Hundred and Eighty Nine Paths couldn’t stand it anymore and drew his sword.

“Calm down.”

Chaoyi Shitai raised her hand to block the One Hundred and Eighty Nine Paths.

“Move aside, Chaoyi Shitai. I have no choice but to cut off the head of this man who dares to speak such nonsense. And just to be clear, you do not have the authority to order me around.”

The Five Mountain Sword Sects Alliance, or rather the Three Mountain Sword Sects Alliance, had all become equals after their new alliance formation. No one wanted to be under anyone’s command any longer.

Their cooperation with the Dark Heavens Association wasn’t about joining the association but about building a new alliance for themselves.

“That’s not it. It’s because there is a punishment that suits him.”

“A punishment?”

Chaoyi Shitai nodded, then looked down at the bound She Teng with a cold sneer.

"In the time I haven't seen you, it seems you’ve become the dog of the Martial Alliance, no, the Mount Hua Sect. Since you refuse a toast and choose defeat instead, I’ll give you a gift for holding on to your so-called beliefs.”

“A gift?”

“I’m saying that I’ll show you how the great Mount Hua Sect collapses under the Three Mountain Sword Sects Alliance.”

Her eyes turned dark. All She Teng could see in her was thick hatred and jealousy.

“Indeed!”

“That’s not a bad idea.”

The One Hundred and Eighty Nine Paths and the Mount Tai Sect's Sword were impressed.

“Look here."

Thud.

A nun of the Mount Heng Sect who had been waiting nearby stepped forward.

"Administer Qi Dispersion Poison periodically to prevent them from using their strength, and tie them up before carrying them with us."

“Understood.”

“We should probably head out soon.”

Chaoyi Shitai took the lead and walked out of the command barracks. Next to her, the One Hundred and Eighty Nine Paths and the Mount Tai Sect's Sword stood side by side.

The people 'greeting' the three Sect Masters of the Five Mountain Sword Sects Alliance were the disciples of Mount Hua Sect and Hengshan Sect, who were tied up and forced to kneel.

In front of them, the disciples of the three Sword Sects fixed their gazes toward a single direction.

At the end of the horizon, the Mount Hua Sect towered high.

“Now, there is no more Five Mountain Sword Sects Alliance.”

Chaoyi Shitai’s eyes shone brightly. She was full of such anger and hatred that it was hard to believe she was a member of the Righteous Faction.

“There is only the Three Mountain Sword Sects Alliance," the One Hundred and Eighty Nine Paths muttered.

“The Mount Hua Sect will be destroyed," the Mount Tai Sect's Sword confirmed.

1. Just to remind you, there are TWO mount Hengs and they have different characters. ☜

2. While She Teng's Daoist title is Ape Arm Sword, Hengshan is also known as Nanyue (Literally Southern Mountain, to denote it being the Southern Mount Heng), and thus he is also known as Southern Mountain's First Sword to Chaoyi Shitai, who is from, wait for it, the Northern Mountain. ☜