Jade Shakes the Thousand Mountains - Chapter 21: The First Sword

Chapter 21: The First Sword

Once, people had praised him in the same way…

Wei Shengming hesitated several times, but ultimately couldn’t resist reminding her: “Little junior sister, ‘Seven Killings’ is a malevolent sword.”

“What if it’s malevolent?” Yu Chanyi raised her eyes coldly to look at him, “Don’t tell me you think ‘Yinghuo’ is some kind of auspicious sign?”

“It’s also a malevolent sword.” Her eyes held contempt, blazing like fire.

Wei Shengming stared into her eyes for a long time, seeing only seriousness in her expression without any pretense, making his feelings quite complicated.

Bitter Heart Grass was poisonous, yet she cultivated it; “Seven Killings” was malevolent, yet she wanted it.

This new disciple of the Inexhaustible Sect truly had an extraordinary… and fierce temperament.

Wei Shengming gazed at her fixedly for so long that Yu Chanyi was growing impatient before he finally spoke: “The swords of Sword Inheriting Sect are renowned, that’s true, but the Giant Sea Ten Provinces aren’t limited to just one source of good swords. Since you don’t want a sword from Sword Inheriting Sect, what do you think of Grand Micro Sect’s swords?”

“Grand Micro Sect’s swords…” Yu Chanyi paused, then said, “Actually, I don’t necessarily have to have Seven Killings. Seven Killings already has its owner.”

“Moreover, finding an exceptional sword is something I’ll do later. For now, I only need a sword for practice. Even if it’s made of ordinary materials, forged by a common craftsman, as long as it pleases my eye and feels comfortable in my hand, that’s enough.”

Wei Shengming countered: “With your temperament, something too ordinary probably won’t feel right in your hands.”

“Here.” He produced a jade token from somewhere and handed it to Yu Chanyi. “Take this jade seal to the market nearest to Inexhaustible Sect, find a vendor selling Magical Artifacts in the northeast corner, and tell him you want a sword.”

Taking the jade token, Yu Chanyi looked down and saw spiritual energy swirling around it, engraved with intricate patterns and the characters “Tai Wei”.

This was… a Grand Micro Sect disciple’s identity jade seal?

What did this mean?

“…Is that clear?” Seeing her distraction, Wei Shengming asked.

Suppressing her confusion, Yu Chanyi replied: “Clear.”

“That vendor usually wears coarse clothing and short jacket, looking like a sword-smithing craftsman, but he’s actually a Sword Cultivator. When you tell him you want to buy a sword, he’ll help you choose one suitable for you.”

Seeing him describe the vendor’s appearance in such detail, Yu Chanyi looked up and asked: “Aren’t you coming with me?”

“If I accompany you, you probably won’t get the sword. Go buy the sword yourself, and remember to return the jade seal to me.”

After explaining everything clearly, Wei Shengming left the Hall of Famous Swords first.

Yu Chanyi remained standing in the Hall of Famous Swords for a moment longer before quickly departing after Wei Shengming left.

Passing by Lu Wenshu’s statue, Yu Chanyi walked hurriedly this time, not sparing him even a glance.

She formed a mystic incantation and rode the wind.

Only when she reached high altitude did she glance downward.

As she rose higher, the statue outside the Hall of Famous Swords grew smaller and smaller, eventually shrinking to a barely visible dot amidst the swirling clouds and mist.

Though she could no longer see it, Yu Chanyi couldn’t help thinking about him, about what those cultivators outside the Hall of Famous Swords had said: the former heaven’s favorite, now the Champion of the righteous path, unmatched throughout the entire Giant Sea Ten Provinces… As she pondered, she suddenly thought of another person.

The owner of Seven Killings, Wei Shengming.

Once, people had praised him in the same way.

A thousand years had passed. The scenery of the Giant Sea Ten Provinces remained unchanged, yet the five great sects had undergone earth-shaking transformations. Who could have imagined that Lu Wenshu would effortlessly overshadow Wei Shengming’s prominence?

Aside from Lu Wenshu, the cultivator Yu Chanyi was most familiar with in the Giant Sea Ten Provinces was Wei Shengming.

Before breaking his Killing Move, she and Lu Wenshu had studied his swordsmanship style thousands of times. Though Lu Wenshu had once dreamed day and night of defeating Wei Shengming, in Yu Chanyi’s heart, Wei Shengming was both enemy and friend the time he had accompanied her was not much less than Lu Wenshu’s. Only, his companionship came not in human form or as a friend, but through Sword Moves.

Though she didn’t know his face or his character, she was intimately familiar with his Sword Moves. She would forget to eat and drink while trying to dismantle his techniques, sometimes spending nearly half a year completely absorbed in the task.

Because of this faint connection, Yu Chanyi wanted to know Wei Shengming’s whereabouts.

Even if the other party didn’t know of her existence, didn’t know who she was. Didn’t even know there was someone like her who had considered him both enemy and friend. Yu Chanyi still wanted to know.

Perhaps she could ask her senior brother see if this expelled disciple of the Grand Micro Sect knew anything about that figure from their sect who had stolen all the glory a thousand years ago.

The market came into view.

Leaping down to the market entrance, Yu Chanyi collected her thoughts. She took one last glance at the mountains behind her before turning forward and continuing on her way.

Following Wei Shengming’s directions, Yu Chanyi went to the northeast corner of the market to find a stall owner wearing coarse short clothing.

She searched for a long time before finally locating the shop.

It was an extremely inconspicuous establishment narrow storefront, hidden location. If one weren’t specifically looking for it, they wouldn’t even notice there was a shop there. Inside, there were no customers, only the shop owner appearing busy, wiping this and that, constantly occupied.

A shop without customers, and an owner who didn’t seem to know what he was busy with.

Seeing this scene, Yu Chanyi frowned, feeling an inexplicable sense of familiarity.

From the moment her senior brother handed her the Grand Micro Sect jade seal, Yu Chanyi had felt a strange intuition perhaps this so-called Magical Artifact Shop her senior brother sent her to was just another front opened by those Grand Micro Sect members sent to monitor him, trying to deceive themselves.

To verify this, she merged into the shadows, moving along the shadows of tables and chairs until she blended into the stall owner’s shadow.

When she saw the familiar Grand Micro Sect emblem on the sole of the owner’s shoes, everything became clear.

Sure enough, they were the same group as Li Xu.

But

When did her senior brother know about this?

Could it be that even before she told him he was being watched, he had always known he was being followed, even completely aware of the other party’s movements?

For a moment, Yu Chanyi fell into brief confusion.

If her senior brother knew everything, then his statement that night she broke into his room “If they had the ability to kill me, would I have lived until today?” probably meant more than just having strong recovery abilities.

Was Second Senior Brother, whom her senior sister called a good-for-nothing who couldn’t even draw his sword, really just a waste?

The timing wasn’t right for deeper contemplation. Yu Chanyi moved through shadows to a deserted corner outside the shop, her form emerging before she gracefully entered the establishment.

“I need a sword.” Yu Chanyi placed the jade seal on the table.

At the sight of the jade seal, the shop owner’s expression immediately changed.

“You look unfamiliar newly initiated disciple?” the shopkeeper asked.

Yu Chanyi didn’t know how to respond, so she remained silent.

Taking her silence as confirmation, the shopkeeper asked first, “What kind of sword are you looking for?”

Yu Chanyi said, “Bring them all out for me to see.”

The shopkeeper glanced at Yu Chanyi twice and muttered complaints, “Why did they send a minor cultivator with such low spiritual power to keep watch? With your meager spiritual power, can you even handle a sword?”

As he spoke, he took out a long sword case and placed it before Yu Chanyi.

Opening it, she saw five swords lying inside.

The five swords varied in length and color, each enveloped in spiritual power with distinct auras.

“These are different swords forged from Five-Colored Kunwu Stone. Try them. If you can’t control them, I’ll switch you to a wooden sword that’s easier to handle much more suitable for minor cultivators like you at a low level.”

Yu Chanyi paid no mind and reached out to touch the swords. The swords of the Grand Micro Sect felt smooth and cool to the touch, quite different from those of the Sword Inheriting Sect, which had a burning sensation she instinctively disliked.

Her slender fingers lightly brushed over the five swords, and finally, she selected a long sword that was black with a hint of red.

Yu Chanyi grasped the sword, lifted it, and her eyes shone with satisfaction.

“I’ll take this one,” she said.

The plainly dressed shopkeeper stared at her hand holding the sword, his expression growing much more serious.

“No wonder they sent you, even with your low spiritual power,” the shopkeeper remarked after watching for a while, noting that Yu Chanyi showed no sign of setting the sword down. He sighed repeatedly, “Logically, with your low cultivation and meager spiritual power, you shouldn’t be able to withstand the cold energy of this sword. Yet, you handle it so effortlessly. Astonishing talent, truly astonishing talent.”

“How many Spirit Coins to buy this sword?” Yu Chanyi asked, indifferent to his praise, focused only on acquiring the sword as quickly as possible.

“Since you have the jade seal, you’re a disciple of the Grand Micro Sect. Disciples of the Grand Micro Sect don’t pay a single coin for swords,” the shopkeeper said, his attitude gradually becoming more amiable as he pushed the jade seal back toward Yu Chanyi. “Here’s your jade seal back. This sword is yours.”

“Thank you.”

As Yu Chanyi was about to leave, the shopkeeper called out again, “Young cultivator, though your talent is high, you must still cultivate diligently. Focus your mind and don’t slack off or entertain distractions. Otherwise, the consequences are right before your eyes.”

Yu Chanyi tightened her grip on the sword. Though she didn’t fully understand what he meant by “consequences right before your eyes,” she was genuinely happy and responded cheerfully, “Alright!”

A sharp, cold energy from the sword seeped into her palm, a sensation she had never felt before, reaching straight to her heart meridian. Far from feeling any discomfort, Yu Chanyi felt a faint tremor of excitement coursing through her entire body, a thrill only cultivators could experience from Sword Qi.

So, this is what it feels like to have a sword in hand!

She finally had a sword of her own.

This moment she had waited a full thousand years since she began practicing swordsmanship.

The clear sky stretched far, and the flowing clouds were pale.

Amid the glow of the setting sun, Yu Chanyi hurried back to the Inexhaustible Sect.

Wu Xi Lan was carving a piece of wood in the courtyard. Looking up, she saw Yu Chanyi returning from outside and noticed that her usually aloof junior sister’s eyes were bright and radiant today.

“Did you buy the sword?” Wu Xi Lan asked.

Yu Chanyi nodded.

She wanted to show her sword to Wu Xi Lan, so she stopped beside her.

However, she heard Wu Xi Lan say: “Good that you’ve bought it, little junior sister. Come, come, come, quickly teach me how to carve hands.”

Yu Chanyi: “Hands?”

“Yes, hands. One of the hands on your small puppet fell off. I’ve been trying all afternoon but can’t figure out how to make one that can be reattached properly.”

Yu Chanyi had no choice but to first help her carve a new hand for the puppet.

What had troubled Wu Xi Lan all afternoon was resolved by Yu Chanyi in just a few quick motions.

Wu Xi Lan watched with shining eyes, sighing in admiration: “Ever since I got these small puppets from you, I can’t bear to weed the medicine fields myself anymore. Little junior sister, what would the Inexhaustible Sect do without you?”

After installing the newly carved hand onto the puppet, Yu Chanyi continued waiting for Wu Xi Lan to bring up the matter of the sword. But instead, Wu Xi Lan asked: “Where’s your senior brother?”

“Senior brother didn’t return with me,” Yu Chanyi patiently replied. “He seemed to have somewhere to go and parted ways with me at the Hall of Famous Swords.”

“He left? Well, that’s probably for the best.” Wu Xi Lan said, “Your senior brother has always been unpredictable in his movements. Now that he’s gone, he probably won’t return for a long time. I hope next time he comes back, he won’t need my Heart-Protecting Pills anymore.”

She kept talking around various topics without ever mentioning the sword. Growing impatient from waiting, Yu Chanyi finally couldn’t help but ask first: “Senior sister, would you like to see my sword?”

Her expression was quite eager.

Wu Xi Lan said: “Oh! Right! I haven’t seen your sword yet!”

Now satisfied, Yu Chanyi formed a mystic incantation and summoned her sword.

A long sword with reddish-black hues rose from behind her. Wu Xi Lan glanced at it and murmured: “So beautiful.”

“Is this the aura of spirit coins? Although I don’t understand swords, I genuinely can’t find any fault with it…”As she admired it, Wu Xi Lan felt both appreciation and a pang of heartache, weakly asking, ‘Little junior sister, did you spend all the spirit coins I gave you?””

Yu Chanyi took the money pouch containing spirit coins from her storage bag and handed it to Wu Xi Lan.

Wu Xi Lan took it, weighed it in her hand, first with suspicion: “You didn’t spend the spirit coins?”

After confirming, she was greatly surprised: “You didn’t spend the spirit coins!”

Yu Chanyi nodded: “No spirit coins were spent. This sword was obtained for me by senior brother.”

Hearing this, Wu Xi Lan broke into a happy smile: “I never thought he’d be useful for something like this. Had I known earlier, I should have had him get you a sword long ago.”

–

That day, Yu Chanyi stayed in the courtyard practicing with her sword, not returning to her room to rest.

The long sword in her hand seemed to sense her long-suppressed excitement, faintly emitting a trembling hum.

Yu Chanyi took a deep breath, recalling the sword moves she had seen before in her mind. The sword in her hand moved accordingly.

Her spirit vein had only been opened to the second inch and was currently impacting the third inch. In theory, with such minimal spiritual power, she shouldn’t be able to execute complete sword moves.

Yet as Yu Chanyi moved, even when her spiritual power became stagnant, cut off, and couldn’t be sustained, the sword in her hand still scattered points of starlight beneath its swings, like stars in the night sky – dazzling and brilliant.

It was the genuine “Shattered Stars”!

She could finally execute sword moves herself, without relying on others. Yu Chanyi nearly teared up with emotion.

She began practicing with her sword again, going through the motions once more.

Over and over, again and again.

She continued until the moon reached its zenith, persisting until late into the night. The tiger’s mouth of Yu Chanyi’s hand ached, her overused spiritual power was nearly depleted, causing pain throughout her body, yet her heart remained burning with passion.

She truly couldn’t bear to loosen her grip on the sword.

No one cherished the feeling of a sword in hand more than she did.

But the time had come when she had to stop.

Just as she was about to turn back to her room, a rustling sound suddenly reached her ears.

Sensing something, Yu Chanyi turned her head back.

By the moonlight, she saw a familiar figure in black standing outside the gate of the Inexhaustible Sect, the deep night falling behind him like crow’s feathers.

It was her senior brother returning.

Yu Chanyi intended to return the jade seal, but as she approached, she first noticed a few scattered pine needles resting on his shoulder.

The clear moonlight fell upon him like frost, turning his black robes pale. The green pine needles on his shoulder were illuminated by the cold glow, as evident as dark clouds against the moon.

Staring at those pine needles, Yu Chanyi suddenly made an unexpected connection and asked in disbelief, “Did you come back from the Sword Forging Cliff?”