Chen Wentian pulled back the Purple Jade Sword and the array of a thousand sword lights dissipated into thin air.
Below, Yu Baosi let out a long sigh in relief as well as defeat. He looked glumly at Chen Wentian and then at his uncle, Yu Yanwu, who was still sprawled on the ground, groaning in pain. Many difficult thoughts flashed across his eyes. Years of freedom, years of being in charge of their own destiny, all of it was gone in a flash. They were immortals, not slaves. But would they rather die than submit? Some would have chosen death but not these two.
"Lord, I still don't know your name." Yu Baosi said awkwardly.
Chen Wentian smiled, "Immortal Sword Bandit Lin Huzhong."
"Sword Bandit… Lin Huzhong…" Yu Baosi repeated, "You truly live up to your great name. I have never seen a sword art like yours. I have fought many sword cultivators in my life but none of them could even hope to match yours."
Chen Wentian waved his hand, "I don't need flattery. What I need is some spiritual oaths from you and your uncle. You two will be members of my Million Swords Menace from now on."
"This… alright."
The spiritual oaths Chen Wentian required were fairly simple. They could never betray him or his disciples or try to harm them in any way. The two immortals were also not allowed to reveal any information about him or his disciples to people who were not members of the Million Swords Menace.
Those covered the basics. As for loyalty and fighting for him with their lives on the line, it was a trickier matter as the two immortals were already members of a bandit alliance known in the central region as the Hero Alliance of Mount Liang. It was somewhat famous and even Chen Wentian had heard of it. They claimed to have over a hundred immortal members who sought to help each other and fight off common enemies. In reality, it was a loose confederation where individuals hardly cared about each other and sometimes even got into conflicts amongst themselves.
Still, this alliance meant that Yu Baosi and Yu Yanwu could not swear absolute loyalty to Chen Wentian. If he asked them to betray the Hero Alliance of Mount Liang, it would conflict with their prior spiritual oaths and they would not be able to do it. They could provide some basic information about the members but could not tell him secrets they had promised not to reveal.
Aside from this minor detail, Yu Baosi and Yu Yanwu made their spiritual oaths successfully and became the first two immortal recruits of the Million Swords Menace. For a family of immortals, the two men were not very wealthy and couldn't contribute much in terms of monetary tribute.
Their primary source of income was the flying boat business with the Skyward General as well as the occasional robbery that they dubbed a provincial tax. All of this put together couldn't even compare to the annual income of Dragon Flower Province.
This was a sad state of affairs but not an uncommon one. Because there was no order in the central region, immortals could not rule over vast swaths of land without absolute strength. They didn't even have a small area to call a permanent home. Their settlement by the river was just that, a temporary settlement. It held their family members, both old and young, as well as their wives and concubines. It was the entire population of the Yu Clan which numbered less than one thousand.
In the central region, they could be considered a minor force of no renown. If stronger immortals came by, they would have to move. If the region was overrun by a beast horde or a demon uprising, they would have to flee. It was a tough life.
Under such conditions, it was a small miracle that their family managed to produce two Spirit Lords. All of it could be attributed to the central region. As long as one was lucky enough, anything was possible.
"Lord Sword Bandit… what are your plans for us?" Yu Yanwu asked.
The old immortal had recovered somewhat from the battle after taking a healing pill. His expression displayed worry and helplessness. Chen Wentian had promised he would not mistreat them but they couldn't quite believe him just yet.
"Plans?" Chen Wentian chuckled and patted his large stomach, "You should know. I have a pretty big appetite. My bandit gang is called the Million Swords Menace and yet I am far from that number. What do you think I should do?"
"Lord Sword Bandit, do you perhaps wish to… force more members of the Hero Alliance of Mount Liang to join your gang?" Yu Yanwu asked.
"Haha, am I that easy to read? I suppose so. But I know your spiritual oath with the alliance will prevent you from harming the other alliance members in underhanded ways. However, from what you have said, open and upfront conflicts are allowed and even common?"
"Yes, Lord Sword Bandit." Yu Yanwu.
Chen Wentian grinned, "Then, tell me… which of the alliance members do you have disputes with or hold old grudges?"
Yu Yanwu and Yu Baosi looked at each other. From the back and forth of spiritual energies, they were probably testing the limits of their spiritual oaths with his question. Finally, they both nodded.
"My lord… there are a few." Yu Yanwu said.
"Good, good! Yanwu, come with me. We still have to make it to the Temple of the Clouds. You can tell me all about it along the way. Baosi, you stay here and keep an eye on your clan. I will send Yanwu back with more instructions in a few days."
"Yes, Lord Sword Bandit!" The two bowed resolutely.
With that, their little sojourn was over and the Skyward General once again resumed its journey to the Temple of the Clouds. The trip was already fruitful but Chen Wentian wasn't satisfied with just this. He had much more ambitious plans.
"Master," Zhou Ziyun finally spoke up as they were facing a sea of clouds at the bow, "Aren't we moving too fast? Master, you are usually more cautious and make far more detailed plans. How can we trust these two immortals with just some spiritual oaths? Didn't you say that such oaths can be broken or circumvented?"
"You are right, as always. But I don't trust them. I am simply using them for our plan. And as for that, don't worry. Not everything has to be thought out completely, analyzed top to bottom and left to right until no detail is left out. Don't you think this is fun? Like we're sailing into the vast unknown?"
Zhou Ziyun frowned, clearly not convinced.
Chen Wentian wrapped a fat arm around her waist, "Why are you unhappy? Why don't you give your master a kiss? That will definitely cheer you up!"
"Eh? Hey! Hey! Stop!" Zhou Ziyun leaned as far back as she could, avoiding his puckered lips with the desperation of a trapped housecat.
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