Unsheathed

The horse-drawn carriage gifted to Chen Ping’an by Gao Xuan arrived quite late, only reaching Chen Ping’an deep in the night. The coach driver was that old man with no facial hair, the same one who had been by Gao Xuan’s side during his time in Jewel Small World, and thus far, Chen Ping’an had met this old man twice.

In contrast with Gao Xuan’s friendly and hospitable demeanor, the old man wore an aloof expression, and after handing over the horse-drawn carriage to Chen Ping’an, he began to make his way back to the capital city on foot.

Before doing so, he turned to take an extra glance at Cui Chan, but Cui Chan was busy marveling at how exceptional a specimen the horse pulling the carriage was, and he completely failed to notice the old man’s scrutiny.

Cui Chan jumped onto the carriage and voluntarily took on the role of coach driver, then waved at Chen Ping’an as he said, “The carriage hasn’t been tampered with in any way, so we can use it without any qualms.”

Chen Ping’an inspected his surroundings to find that it was already quite dark, and due to the nightly curfew in the capital city, the lively and bustling official road during the day was completely deserted at night.

Chen Ping’an shook his head as he said, “This is a good chance for me to practice my walking meditation. Just focus on driving the carriage, I’ll be able to keep up as long as you don’t go too fast.”

Cui Chan knew how stubborn Chen Ping’an could be, so he didn’t bother to try and persuade him any further. He slowly drove the carriage forward while taking a sip of wine as he loudly mused, “There are countless things to worry and fret over, but all things come to an end eventually. On another note, the autumnal weather sure is nice and cool!” [1]

Meanwhile, Chen Ping’an trailed along behind the horse-drawn carriage in silence, repeating the six-step walking meditation of the Mountain Shaking Fist over and over again. At this point, walking and standing meditation were already second nature to him.

As for Cui Chan, he continued to ramble nonsense, rattling off quotes from Confucian classics one moment, then reciting random poetry phrases the next, and he was barely quiet for even a single moment.

In the end, he even began singing about how he had an old donkey that he never rode, and after listening to his ramblings for close to two hours, Chen Ping’an finally exhaled and ceased in his walking meditation, then declared, “I’m going to take a rest inside the carriage.”

Only after entering the carriage and setting down the basket on his back did Chen Ping’an notice that there was a small mountain of jars and vials stacked up in the corner. However, due to how dark it was, he was unable to discern what these containers held.

Cui Chan smiled as he explained, “There are a few jars of fine wine, some pills for cultivation and injury recovery, and even some make-up. That Gao Xuan really is an interesting guy. If we set aside the fact that he’s from an enemy nation and judge the merit of his character alone, he’s a lot more… friendly and accommodating to those useful to him than the younger brother of your friend, Song Jixin, and my former disciple, even though they’re both princes.”

Chen Ping’an sat down behind Cui Chan with his side facing him and his legs dangling outside of the carriage as he shook his head and said, “Song Jixin was never my friend.”

“I’m sure, Song Jixin… I suppose we should call him Song Mu now, would be heartbroken to hear that,” Cui Chan chuckled. “Prior to leaving Clay Vase Alley, Qi Jingchun bestowed upon Zhao Yao a seal that contains the inscription ‘the world welcomes spring’, while his parting gift for Song Jixin were six books, three of which were miscellaneous ones, namely ‘Profound and Subtle’, ‘Tao Li Anthology’, and ‘Tales of Mountains and Seas’, while the other three were elementary books, namely ‘Principles of Life for Children’, ‘Rites and Music’, and ‘An Anthology of Literary Essays’.

“Song Jixin harbors very complex emotions toward you. In order to give himself some peace of mind, he left the latter three books on the table in his house prior to his departure. However, that’s where the complexities of the human heart come into play.

“He knew even if you picked up the key that he tossed into your yard, there’s no way you would’ve taken those books without permission. Even so, he can still console his own conscience by convincing himself that he did a good deed for you. Isn’t he a smart guy, Teacher?”

Cui Chan had revealed a bunch of secrets, but there was one thing that he had refrained from mentioning.

He speculated that Qi Jingchun had already anticipated that all of this would happen. He had foreseen that Song Jixin would look down on those three elementary books and choose to leave them behind for Chen Ping’an.

Cui Chan had previously thought that he was far superior to Qi Jingchun when it came to hatching plots and devising machinations, but looking back now, he realized that he couldn’t have been more wrong.

“Song Jixin has always been very smart,” Chen Ping’an conceded in a quiet voice.

“Is your relationship with him so awkward because he deceived you into going back on your promise to your mother?” Cui Chan asked with a curious expression.

Chen Ping’an offered no response.

Cui Chan smiled as he continued, “I shouldn’t have brought that up. I’m not trying to make excuses for justifications for Song Jixin, I’m just telling you the truth. Regardless of whether what he did was right or wrong, there’s an underlying reason behind his actions, and that reason is a very simple one.

“Song Jixin enjoyed far superior material conditions to yours, and later on, he even had a maidservant to tend to his needs. On top of that, he was well-versed in reading, go, and calligraphy, but the more superior he was to you, the more discontent and envious he became.”

“At the time, he was mistakenly regarded as the kiln supervision official’s illegitimate son, and from a young age, he was always being insulted by everyone in the town for this, both to his face and behind his back,” Chen Ping’an finally said.

Cui Chan nodded in response. “That’s why, whenever Song Jixin sees you, he would think to himself, why is it that someone as wretched and impoverished as yourself at least had a complete set of parents, yet he didn’t? In fact, he didn’t even know the name of his own mother.

“The thing that was most unbearable to him was that despite how tragic your life has been, in his eyes, you seemed to have been living a far more enjoyable life than him. Once you’ve filled your belly, you’d go to sleep, and after you wake up, you’d busy yourself with your daily activities.

“Whenever Song Jixin sees this, he would be overcome with envy and frustration. Hence, he wanted to pass his suffering onto you, and he knew what you cared about the most, so he decided to take that away from you.”

Chen Ping’an could still recall that rainy night in Clay Vase Alley. That was the first time that he had ever been struck by the urge to kill someone, and he had almost strangled Song Jixin to death that night.

Liu Xianyang had snuck out of the kilns with him, and he inadvertently witnessed Chen Ping’an’s actions from afar. As a result, for an entire month after that night, Liu Xianyang didn’t dare to speak to Chen Ping’an, much to his dismay.

“The actions of a child can result in many different types of consequences, whether that be laughable, pitiful, or terrible,” Cui Chan sighed. “Not only do children have the hearts of children. There are many important figures in lofty positions who are just as immature and naive as children when dealing with certain important matters that require a far higher level of maturity and competence.”

Chen Ping’an arranged his hands into the sword furnace position, but instead of continuing to meditate, he said with a calm expression, “While it’s true that I resented Song Jixin fiercely for making me go back on my promise to my mother, that’s not what truly made me dislike him.”

Cui Chan was very intrigued to hear this. “Oh? What else could he have possibly done then?”

“That time that Liu Xianyang was almost beaten to death, Song Jixin was squatting on top of a nearby wall, encouraging the people that were beating Liu Xianyang. He wanted to see Liu Xianyang being beaten to death. Someone like him is… very terrifying in my eyes,” Chen Ping’an replied.

Cui Chan fell silent upon hearing this.

Chen Ping’an raised his head and cast his gaze into the distance as he said, “Back in the town, there’s a saying that those who watch others carrying heavy loads can’t comprehend how tiresome it is. I don’t think this is particularly reprehensible, but if you have someone that maliciously adds to the heavy load just because they think it’s fun, how could you possibly make friends with someone like that?”

“It’s not like Song Jixin ever added to the load on your shoulders,” Cui Chan countered. “Deep down in his heart, perhaps Song Jixin really wanted to become your friend. He’s smart enough to know what type of people he should befriend. For example, he looks down on Zhao Yao, whom he perceives to not be as intelligent as him, but he still remained on friendly terms with Zhao Yao due to his connection to Qi Jingchun.”

“I dislike people like that,” Chen Ping’an condemned with a shake of his head.

“You know, a lot of people will come to dislike someone like you as well,” Cui Chan said in a candid manner.

“Why do I need so many people to like me?” Chen Ping’an asked with a smile. “As long as I have food, shelter, and clothes on my back, I have no worries. I don’t want or need anything from anyone else.”

“Teacher, you just described a mental state that is impossible to tarnish as it is one that is without desire. That is truly an admirable state of mind to be in!” Cui Chan said as he gave Chen Ping’an a thumbs-up.

“I know you’re trying to lure me into talking about these things so you can gather more information on me, but it’s fine. After telling you all of these things, I feel a lot better now,” Chen Ping’an said in a quiet voice.

“Teacher, you possess immense wisdom under a humble facade, while I harbor tremendous stupidity under a facade of wisdom,” Cui Chan chuckled. “If we join forces, the world will be our oyster!”

All of a sudden, Chen Ping’an asked, “You must know A’Liang, right? He once sang the same song about the old donkey that he never rode.”

Cui Chan’s expression changed slightly upon hearing this, and he replied, “I knew A’Liang from a very long time ago, even earlier than Qi Jingchun, and certainly a lot earlier than the likes of Ma Zhan and Mao Xiaodong. Back when I was drinking with A’Liang, those two were probably just a pair of kids playing with mud somewhere.”

It was a night with a bright moon and few stars, and a hint of sorrow appeared on Cui Chan’s face as the night breeze blew through his hair.

“After I left my hometown, I also embarked on a journey to seek out an education, but I had to go far further than you did. I was extremely proud, and after being thoroughly embarrassed one time, I accepted the old scholar as my teacher in a fit of rage. At the time, the old scholar wasn’t all that renowned, and his teachings were viewed as heretic, so I was his first-ever disciple.

“Qi Jingchun and the others all became the old man’s disciples after I did, and he didn’t actually have very many direct disciples. His style of teaching was one in which he insisted on imparting knowledge in as much detail as possible. At times, there were simple concepts that could easily be explained in a couple of sentences, but he would talk about them for days, so he simply didn’t have the time and energy to keep too many disciples around.

“He had more in-name disciples, and as for those who were willing to stoop to calling themselves the lapdogs of the Scholarly Sage, there are too many of those to even count. A’Liang met the old scholar even earlier than I did. Initially, A’Liang’s intention was actually to beat up the old scholar, but he wasn’t just any ordinary old scholar. Instead, his way with words was unmatched.

“There’s a debate between the three teachings, Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism, held once every 60 years, and it’s the most perilous event under the heavens with no equal! Countless bright figures in the three teachings have been lured down unorthodox paths during these debates, ultimately becoming viewed as heretics within their own teachings.

“The more respected and revered those people once were, the more denounced and condemned they became after their conversions. Prior to turning my back on my teacher, I was confidently expressing my own insights on Confucianism during the debate for the purpose of helping… Forget it, only a washed-up old man talks about their former glory.

“The old scholar was the only one in history to have participated in two consecutive editions of the debate, and most importantly, he won on both occasions, but that’s a story for another time. All you need to know now is that back then, it was truly no exaggeration to say that the old scholar was completely unmatched under the heavens.

“He was referred to as the leader of a teaching, a moon among stars, and if one weren’t a scholar themselves, there was no way that they would’ve been able to fathom his brilliance. Otherwise, why do you think the old man was revered in the Confucian temples, even though he secured himself a significant merit title during the imperial examination?

“The small nation that the old scholar came from was essentially begging him to accept an honorary title of unprecedented prestige, but the old scholar stoically refused. In reality, he was hatching a plot. Anyway, it didn’t take much talking at all before A’Liang was completely swept along by the old scholar’s words, and the two sworn enemies became the best of friends.

“From there onward, the old scholar’s status was elevated further and further, while A’Liang’s cultivation base climbed higher and higher, and the two of them had always been on great terms with one another. Among the old scholar’s disciples, A’Liang shared the closest ties with me, Qi Jingchun, and another disciple with the Zuo surname.

“A’Liang did a lot for the three of us. In particular, for the sake of Qi Jingchun and the guy with the Zuo surname, he waged many epic battles for the ages!”

A reminiscent smile appeared on Cui Chan’s face, and he continued, “Whenever A’Liang returns to us after one of his epic battles, he would boast by saying stuff like ‘man, I really am badass’ or ‘when I was laying waste to that sect today, all of the celestial maidens in there had stars in their eyes and wanted to eat me alive! Forget it, you kids are too young to understand’.”

Cui Chan took a sip of wine as he sighed, “There was one really admirable quality in A’Liang, which was that unlike us scholars, he never boasted when he talked.”

After saying so much, Cui Chan finally smiled as he concluded, “That’s all I have to say. Just like you said, I feel a lot better now as well.”

Chen Ping’an had already closed his eyes to meditate, but it was clear that he had listened carefully to every single word that Cui Chan had said.

Cui Chan had a placid look on his face as he said, “We’ve opened ourselves up to each other, but that still doesn’t change the fact that I’m a bad person, while you’re a good person.”

Chen Ping’an opened his eyes as he said, “I’m going to keep practicing my walking meditation.”

“Go ahead,” Cui Chan said with a smile.

With that, Chen Ping’an jumped down from the carriage and continued to practice his walking meditation in silence.

The smile on Cui Chan’s face gradually faded, and he finished the final bit of wine in his flagon as a dazed look appeared on his face. He murmured to himself, “Chen Ping’an, are you not aware that someone like you is also terrifying in the eyes of many?”

“I heard that,” Chen Ping’an called out from behind the carriage.

Cui Chan burst into laughter. “You have exceptional hearing, Teacher! As expected of a prodigiously talented martial artist like yourself! It won’t be long before you’re entirely invincible and unite the entire world under your flag!”

“Thanks,” Chen Ping’an grumbled in a sarcastic voice.

————

On the return journey, they passed through many scenic locations.

The horse-drawn carriage and the horse had already been sold by Cui Chan for a high price of 1,500 taels of silver, and with those funds, he purchased himself a beautiful bookcase, in which he stuffed everything that was of value that was originally in the carriage.

In contrast with the journey to Great Sui Nation, Chen Ping’an had more spare time to practice his Mountain Shaking Fist during the return journey, as well as to practice the Eighteen Stops.

As long as there was no heavy rain, he would practice twice daily, once in the morning and once at night. He performed his walking meditation very slowly, as if Li Baoping and Li Huai were still practicing alongside him, except the children had been replaced with Cui Chan, whose movements were far more fluid and graceful than Chen Ping’an’s.

Whenever they came across a tall mountain or a large body of water, Cui Chan would loudly recite passages from sagely scriptures, and even though Chen Ping’an remained silent on those occasions, he would always recite the passages in his heart alongside Cui Chan.

Unlike that night on the official road outside Great Sui Nation’s capital city, the two of them no longer opened up and spoke candidly to one another. Instead, they would often go entire days without speaking to each other at all, and Cui Chan would occasionally sneak away. Upon his return, his mood would vary depending on the outcomes of his outings, and Chen Ping’an never asked where he had gone or what he had done.

Thus, the two of them continued in their journey without any urgency, and autumn soon transitioned into winter.

The route for the return journey had been selected by Cui Chan, and it was completely different from the one that they had taken to reach Great Sui Nation, but Chen Ping’an raised no objections to this.

The two of them would occasionally encounter some bizarre and interesting events, which they would either observe from afar, or find themselves right in the thick of the action. Even though Chen Ping’an had already completed the journey from the Great Li Empire to Great Sui Nation, he still couldn’t help but be bewildered by some of these events.

One night, the two of them were traveling along a large lake to the east of Great Sui Nation. Under the moonlight, they spotted a pair of graceful immortals flying through the air in the distance.

Each of them was holding a massive iron chain, using which they lifted an enormous rock the size of a mountain from the bottom of the lake, sending huge waves sweeping over the surface of the lake in all directions. The mountainous rock was hoisted up into the air, then carried to their sect.

Cui Chan explained to Chen Ping’an that there were many things that accumulated the natural essence of the environment they were in, and if these things were to be discovered by a cultivating sect, the sect would often send people to seize the object and transport it back to the sect to serve as an exclusive artifact that helps preserve the fortune of the sect.

Cui Chan also said that this particularly cultivating sect was being quite considerate of others as they had chosen to carry out the operation at night, and they were willing to spend the money to purchase expensive iron essence chains.

The average cultivating sect wouldn’t have bothered to take these measures, and they would’ve simply bought a large quantity of cheap metal chains for the job. If the chains were to snap and drop the mountain on the way back to the sect, the local authorities wouldn’t dare to hold the cultivating sect accountable even if it were to crush a mortal settlement and result in a bunch of deaths.

Even if the mountain were to fall into a large city, so the incident couldn’t be kept secret, the matter would’ve still most likely been settled with a payment from the offending cultivating sect.

In a majestic mountain range on the border between Great Sui Nation and Yellow Court Nation, Chen Ping’an spotted a large school of what appeared to have been carp. However, they were traveling along the mountain path, seemingly completely fine despite the fact that they were out of water.

Cui Chan explained to Chen Ping’an that these were mountain crossing carp, and that they could survive for up to half a month out of water. Mountain crossing carp had extremely high standards of the water that they chose to reside in, and if the body of water they inhabited turned bad and uninhabitable, they would immediately move.

The more abundant the spiritual energy in a body of water, the higher the population of mountain crossing carp that would generally be found within, and one out of every 10,000 mountain crossing carp would be a golden spirit creature. Hence, most cultivating sects liked to keep such creatures in their ponds and observe their migratory behavior to determine the levels of spiritual energy in the sects.

After that, as they were passing through a lavish city of Yellow Court Nation, they encountered a pair of young swordsmen racing through a busy market no more than five feet above the ground atop flying swords.

They were traveling extremely quickly, as if they were having a competition to see who was the superior flying swordsman, and they had no regard whatsoever for the people around them. Some of the people in the market weren’t able to get out of their way in time, and many of them suffered injuries of different degrees of severity as a result.

As one of the swordsmen was flying through the air near Chen Ping’an, an old woman was so startled that she fell onto the ground. Both she and the swordsman attempted to evade each other, but unfortunately for her, they inadvertently mirrored one another’s movements, so in her attempt to dodge to the side, she had actually positioned herself right in the swordsman’s path.

The young swordsman didn’t want to lose to his companion, so he sped up instead of trying to take further evasive action, clearly planning to plow his way straight through the old woman.

If Chen Ping’an hadn’t dragged the old woman out of his path, she would’ve most likely been killed on the spot.

Not only was the swordsman not grateful to Chen Ping’an for this, he turned around and gave Chen Ping’an a vicious glare instead.

After that, the two swordsmen quickly vanished into the distance.

All of the residents of the city were extremely shaken up by this incident, but no one dared to pursue the matter, and even those who were complaining about what had just happened only dared to do so in hushed tones.

Cui Chan remained completely indifferent to this, and he remarked that other qi refiners who were yet to reach the Middle Five Tiers wouldn’t have dared to be so reckless and brazen in a city like this, but swordsman had always been considered to be the most precious of qi refiners, and that was why those two were able to get away with such reprehensible behavior.

The old woman thanked Chen Ping’an earnestly for saving her life, then rushed away in a panic, while Chen Ping’an turned in the direction that the two swordsmen had departed in, staring after them for a long while.

“You can’t hold everyone accountable for their actions,” Cui Chan remarked in an indifferent manner. “Besides, how are you going to hold them accountable anyway? Are you going to chase after them and kill them? Don’t forget that they didn’t kill a single person here.

“Alternatively, are you going to try and preach to them that what they did was wrong and warn them not to do this again? Even if you were powerful enough to force them to accept your preaching, what are you going to be able to do if they simply fall back to their old ways after you leave? If you ask me, you’re only raising unnecessary ire for yourself by concerning yourself with these matters.”

“I won’t chase after them. I don’t have the power required to make a difference here,” Chen Ping’an said with a shake of his head.

“I would rather you get involved in this. As your student, I’ve done nothing to help you along this entire journey, and I’m feeling racked with guilt, so I would be extremely grateful for an opportunity to do something for you.”

It was clear that Cui Chan was only saying this to goad Chen Ping’an, and after receiving no response, Cui Chan smiled as he asked, “So what are you going to do if you do manage to attain the power to make a difference someday?”

“I’ll wait for that day to come before making a decision,” Chen Ping’an replied as he continued on his way.

Cui Chan hurriedly followed along as he asked, “What day is that day going to be?”

“I don’t know, but it’s not going to be tomorrow,” Chen Ping’an replied.

Cui Chan continued to trail along behind Chen Ping’an as he mused, “It would be great if that day turned out to be the day after tomorrow then. As your student, I would be able to bask in the light of your glory.”

Chen Ping’an raised his head to look up at the sky, and it suddenly occurred to him that the new year would’ve almost arrived by the time he returned to the town, and he was wondering if he should take this opportunity to buy a few sets of couplets as these things weren’t really sold in Red Candle Town.

Right at this moment, Cui Chan also raised his head, but he was looking at a tall building, and a faint smile appeared on his face as he mused, “How interesting.”

Chen Ping’an turned in the same direction to find a tall pavilion that stood out in the city like a crane among chickens. In stark contrast with the clear weather elsewhere in the city, flashes of lightning could be seen within the dark clouds above the building, and it was as if it were raining only in that one small area.

Cui Chan turned to Chen Ping’an with a smile as he said, “This is something that we definitely have to get involved with, Teacher! If you’re not willing to come, then I’ll go on my own, and you can wait for me at the city

Chen Ping’an didn’t skip a beat as he continued to make his way toward the city gates, and he replied, “If you haven’t come out by the time the nightly curfew arrives, then I’ll go ahead on my own.”

A sullen look appeared on Cui Chan’s face. “How could you be so cruel, Teacher?”

Chen Ping’an’s back was facing Cui Chan as he raised his arm and displayed his middle finger.

Cui Chan’s expression immediately changed as he waved farewell to Chen Ping’an. “You’re becoming more and more humorous, Teacher! It appears my influence is being felt!”

Chen Ping’an withdrew his middle finger and clenched his fist tightly.

Cui Chan hurriedly extended a bow as he called out, “Take care, Teacher!”

1. This is a somewhat altered version of a poem from a poet who lacks the words to articulate his worries and concerns, so he can only console himself by telling himself that everything comes to an end eventually, then attempts to distract himself by remarking on the weather. ☜