Unsheathed

Chen Ping’an only took a few glances at them before moving aside to let them pass.

After traveling around the cultivation world for extended periods of time, he had witnessed all kinds of strange things in the mountains and all kinds of weird and wonderful people in the mortal empires. His experience and observation skills were much better than before, so he was seldom surprised by what he saw.

There were those from official families of the Water Combing Nation in the convoy, and they were accompanied by light cavalry guards who had bows on their backs and sabers by their sides, with the ends of their quivers looking like accumulated snow. There were also calm and steady members of the cultivation world who were carrying their sabers on their hips in reverse.

This was the unique saber-bearing method of cultivators from the Unruly Saber Villa, something that would leave a deep impression on other people.

Chen Ping’an recognized the burly man carrying a huge ox horn bow on his back. This person was called Ma Lu, and he was the subordinate of Wang Shanhu who had become engaged in a conflict with him at the waterfall of the Sword Water Villa. Wang Yiran had loudly chided Ma Lu at the time, and it could be seen from his response that the Unruly Saber Villa had a fairly good culture. Wang Yiran’s success today wasn’t all thanks to Han Yuanshan.

Since Chen Ping’an was aware of the transaction between the Sword Water Villa and Han Yuanshan, and with Su Lang failing to challenge and defeat Song Yushao in swordsmanship, it could be said that everything was already set in stone. Chen Ping’an didn’t do anything even though he recognized some members of the convoy, and he instead moved off the road and slowly walked toward the distant mountain forest. He was responding like the wanderers in the cultivation world who felt inferior to officials.

Subordinate Ma Lu was faithful to his duty, and he glanced at the passer-by and carefully examined him for a while before averting his gaze and not thinking much of the person.

There were three women sitting inside one of the carriages, with one of them being Chu Hao’s wife and the daughter of the previous alliance leader of the Water Combing Nation’s martial arts world. She had always viewed the Sword Water Villa and the Song Clan as mortal enemies, and she had played a huge role behind the scenes back then to have Chu Hao lead the large army of imperial soldiers to encircle and attack the Sword Water Villa.

The two other women were slightly younger, but both of them were wearing hairstyles and hair ornaments that signified their statuses as married women. One had the surname Han, and she had a baby face that still carried some hints of childhood. She was Han Yuanxue, the younger sister of Han Yuanshan. As a descendant of Mount Xiaochong’s Han Clan, she had married a champion scholar who had compiled and edited texts in the Imperial Hanlin Academy for three years. His official rank wasn’t high, only being at the sixth-rank, but he was a most respectable official from the Imperial Hanlin Academy, after all. Moreover, he was incredibly skilled at Buxu poetry, and the emperor who admired Daoism also held him in high regard. He had a powerful backer in Mount Xiaochong’s Han Clan as well, so he was destined to enjoy a bright future.

The other woman was a young and gallant-looking lady. She was none other than Wang Shanhu, Wang Yiran’s only daughter. Compared to Han Yuanxue who was from a powerful mortal clan, Wang Shanhu had married a man who was even younger and more successful. He had become a third-rank champion scholar at eighteen, and it was rumored that he had only lost two places because the emperor wasn’t fond of child prodigies. Otherwise, he could have easily become the champion scholar.

He was already a prefectural overseer of the Water Combing Nation, and it was truly a rare feat for him to become a high-ranking official in his thirties in the Water Combing Nation, where the emperors past and present all discriminated against child prodigies in the imperial court. Moreover, the prefecture that he oversaw was coincidentally the Green Pine Prefecture that bordered the Sword Water Villa. They were in the same province but not the same prefecture.

As for why the three women had gathered together, Chu Hao’s wife had especially rushed over from the capital to enjoy the occasion. She wanted to personally witness the reputation of the Sword Water Villa plummet to icy depths in the Water Combing Nation after Su Lang defeated Song Yushao in swordsmanship.

Wang Shanhu lived nearby with her husband anyway, while Han Yuanshan’s champion scholar brother-in-law was about to fill a vacant official spot. This was a special case, and it was possible that he was going to become a leading county magistrate in the regions instead of staying in the Six Ministries in the capital. Regardless of whether one was good at dealing with matters and interacting with other people, becoming a county magistrate in the same city as the provincial office and prefectural office would undoubtedly be a tiring job, both mentally and physically.

Han Yuanxue had traveled south to visit Wang Shanhu this time, and she naturally hoped that Wang Shanhu’s husband — the future superior of her husband — could look after them a little. Otherwise, the position of leading county magistrate would be a torturous one if he were given the cold shoulder by the governor and intentionally picked on by the prefectural overseer.

When one became an official in the regions, one’s original reputation and background would often become a double-edged sword. There was one aspect of the imperial court that was much like little children playing house. Whoever wore new boots would have their toes stepped on by the others. After the new boots were dirtied, everyone would be the same again. This was called blending in with one’s environment.

Lady Chu was frowning in slight anxiety, with her expression inviting pity and care. Her skin was well-maintained, and even though she wasn’t young anymore, she still maintained her beauty and charm. She was no less attractive than younger women such as Wang Shanhu and Han Yuanxue.

It was very understandable for Lady Chu to feel disappointed and self-pitying at this moment. A good show had been imminent, and all of the pieces had already been in place. Unexpectedly, however, the Pine Stream Nation’s Green Bamboo Sword Immortal Su Lang was completely useless, and he shockingly failed to suppress the Sword Water Villa after two attempts. This in turn allowed Song Yushao, the old bastard who already had one foot in the grave, to gain a boatload of fame and reputation for free.

She felt extremely aggrieved and downcast, and she couldn’t help but raise her hand and pat her chest. She had come across two heartless bastards in her life, and neither of them was any good!

One of them liked to consider the big picture before making decisions, and this person had obtained both her heart and a handsome dowry that was equivalent to almost half of the wealth of the Water Combing Nation’s cultivation world. This person was Chu Hao, and he was surprisingly a coward who refused to turn against Song Yushao no matter what. He always told her to wait for a little longer, and when he finally felt like the time was right, he had mysteriously died just like that.

Han Yuanshan had swooped in after Chu Hao’s death, but he was even more shameless than that good-for-nothing. After winning over her heart and her body a few years ago, he had surprisingly told her in a very direct manner that she didn’t need to dream about seeking revenge. Not only that, but the two clans might even become closer and have more frequent contact in the future.

Fortunately, Han Yuanshan hadn’t rejected her request to leave the capital to watch the good show of Su Lang challenging Song Yushao’s swordsmanship this time. However, he had asked her to promise that she wouldn’t take advantage of the situation to attack the Sword Water Villa or do anything else without his prior permission. She was only allowed to spectate the battle from the sidelines. Otherwise, he had threatened her by saying that he could only take action despite their several intimate years together as husband and wife.

Just listen to this! Where was the humanity in these words?

By assuming Chu Hao’s identity, Han Yuanshan had enjoyed all of opportune time, geographical advantage, and popular support over the past few years. He was the most powerful man outside the emperor in the Water Combing Nation, yet he still treated her with such harshness and heartlessness.

However, when she occasionally thought about these matters when she was alone, she would conclude that Han Yuanshan most likely wouldn’t have been able to reach such a magnificent height if it weren’t for his wild ambitions and heartlessness. If it weren’t for him, she wouldn’t have been able to shine like a moon among the stars in the capital where all of the noble women enjoyed similarly lofty statuses.

She understood these simple principles.

Han Yuanxue noticed Lady Chu’s sombre mood, so she gently opened the curtains of the carriage to let in some fresh air.

Ever since her older brother disappeared back then, Mount Xiaochong’s Han Clan had been dragged into the mess and suffered greatly as a result. The Han Clan would panic at the slightest breeze afterward, and her father had issued an order that no one was allowed to attend any banquets in the near term, and that the clan would shut its doors and reflect for two years.

Afterward, for reasons unknown, she felt like the men in her clan started to become active in the imperial court and battlefield again. In fact, she felt like they were even more active and successful compared to the past. In any case, she only knew that the lofty and powerful Great General Chu Hao was very close to the Han Clan. She had also met him a few times before, and she always felt like the great general’s gaze was very strange when he looked at her. However, it wasn’t in a lecherous sense, and it was instead as if he were a senior looking at his junior. As for Lady Chu, the most well-off lady in the capital, she was very intimate with Han Yuanxue and often invited her along for spring outings.

After hearing of Su Lang’s failure this time, Lady Chu actually wanted to return to the capital right away. However, both she and the prefectural office received a secret letter from the capital, and it was because of this that they were making this trip right now.

Han Yuanshan was very blunt in his letter to Lady Chu, and he asked her to take the initiative to pay a visit to the Sword Water Villa. Otherwise, she could forget about being the so-called leader of the noble women in the capital. Since she hailed from the cultivation world, she could piss off back to the cultivation world if she couldn’t do this.

Lady Chu was both shocked and afraid, and she felt deep sorrow as if her insides were being hacked apart. How could she not be aggrieved and downcast at this moment?

Fortunately, her two juniors in Wang Shanhu and Han Yuanxue always treated her with great respect, and this allowed her to feel slightly better.

Chen Ping’an suddenly stopped in his tracks, and it wasn’t long before a large group of people from the cultivation world charged out from the mountain forest, all of them strong and vigorous as they brandished a variety of weapons and rushed over.

The convoy of carriages noticed the commotion near the mountain forest, and the elite light cavalry from the Water Combing Nation immediately spread out like a net and grabbed the bows and arrows from their backs.

Meanwhile, the disciples of the Unruly Saber Villa were completely unafraid as they formed a tight circle and guarded the carriage holding the three women.

Chen Ping’an didn’t know where this group of “assassins” was from, but after gauging the strength of both sides, he had no doubt that they would lose. Perhaps they weren’t throwing straws against the wind, but they weren’t too far off.

Perhaps “Chu Hao’s” reputation had hit rock bottom after the general recognized Song Changjing as his ancestor in military affairs, so the gallant and righteous members of the cultivation world all viewed him as a traitor who had usurped power in the imperial court and deserved death. However, killing Chu Hao was as difficult as ascending the heavens, so they turned their attention to Chu Hao’s relatives instead, somewhat increasing their chances of success.

“Chu Hao” had steadily built up his bad reputation over time, making significant progress after the Water Combing Nation became a vassal state of the Great Li Empire. In the eyes of the Water Combing Nation’s imperial court, Chu Hao had helped the stationed scholarly officials of the Great Li Empire suppress many loyal officials of the nation for the sake of his own private gains.

During this process, “Chu Hao” hadn’t been averse to manipulating matters and using his public power for personal gain, and this further solidified his reputation as a traitor of the nation. He naturally made countless enemies in the process, so purging the emperor’s court of evil ministers naturally became a slogan that resonated strongly in the scholarly world and the cultivation world.

Lady Chu covered her mouth and yawned, clearly accustomed to these futile assassination attempts already.

“Do these people from the cultivation world not find themselves annoying?” Han Yuanxue complained unhappily. “They only know how to target and vent their frustrations on women like us, so just what kind of gallant heroes does this make them?”

The descendants of Mount Xiaochong’s Han Clan had faced more than just one or two assassination attempts over the past few years, and even Big Sister Hushan’s husband had once faced an assassination from the cultivation world simply because of his relatively close relationship with Chu Hao and the barbarians from the Great Li Empire. If it weren’t for the martial secretaries of the Great Li Empire protecting him, Big Sister Hushan would have already become a widow now. Thus, Han Yuanxue felt extremely anxious now that her husband was also about to leave the capital. It was very possible that he would also become a target of these mysterious hostilities.

There was a bright glimmer in Wang Shanhu’s eyes right now, and she was eager to jump out to show her wares. However, she grabbed nothing but empty air when she subconsciously reached for her hip, and she couldn’t help but feel extremely dejected. Her father had forbidden her from practicing martial arts and carrying a saber around after she became married.

When accompanying her husband to the water god temple in his jurisdiction to pray for rain, they had faced an assassination attempt when making their way back to the prefectural office. If Wang Shanhu had been armed with a saber at the time, the assassin wouldn’t have been able to even get near them. Even so, Wang Yiran still forbade her from carrying a saber, and he merely dispatched a few more elites from the Unruly Sword Saber to act as personal bodyguards for his daughter and his son-in-law in the Green Pine Prefecture.

There were thirty-odd people in the group of gallant attackers who swore that they would rid the Water Combing Nation of its traitorous ministers, and they had most likely gathered together from many different forces in the cultivation world. Chen Ping’an was placed in a very awkward position at this moment, and he could only stand still and grab his Sword Nurturing Gourd, pretending to drink wine lest he offend both sides once they started to fight.

As for stopping these people who were risking their lives for the greater good? Chen Ping’an wouldn’t do such a thing.

Presumably because of Chen Ping’an’s inaction and tact, the gallant individuals from the cultivation world didn’t rush over to challenge him. Whether intentionally or not, they slightly shifted their path and took a detour around him.

However, a middle-aged swordsman who had already dashed past Chen Ping’an suddenly shouted, “The Sword Water Villa is going to kill these traitors from the Chu Clan!”

Chen Ping’an felt slightly helpless.

To shout such a slogan was to forcefully push the Sword Water Villa and Sword Saint Song toward death, forcing them to return to the cultivation world to fight to the death with the Unruly Saber Villa. After all, this was the only way to prevent Chu Hao from ruling over the cultivation world.

This was both a hidden scheme and an open scheme.

If people from both sides suffered casualties today, then the Sword Water Villa would be dragged into the mess no matter how they protested their innocence. The more casualties that occurred, the further the Sword Water Villa would be pushed into the firepit that was the cultivation world. They would end up as enemies of the entire imperial court of the Water Combing Nation. At that time, the cultivation world and the scholarly world of the Water Combing Nation would definitely be filled with irrepressible fervor as they expressed support for Sword Saint Song and his Sword Water Villa.