Jade Shakes the Thousand Mountains - Chapter 29: Sword Intent

Chapter 29: Sword Intent

Whether senior brother intends to give me that sword or not…

The courtyard was plunged into absolute silence, so quiet one could almost hear a pin drop.

Li Xu’s fingers twitched slightly around the sword hilt, then a trickle of crimson liquid began flowing from his knuckles.

Blood dripped down the sword guard, coating the gleaming blade with a dull red hue like dust.

His reflection on the long sword was obscured by blood, gradually blurring beyond recognition.

Li Xu felt dazed, taking a long moment to collect his thoughts.

Sword Intent… it was actually Sword Intent…

He remembered when he first joined the Grand Micro Sect and began practicing swordsmanship, his master had told him that Sword Intent was the most challenging aspect for a Sword Cultivator to master. So-called Sword Intent was not merely a Sword Cultivator’s style, but an “aura” emanating from the very depths of their sword heart.

No matter how high a Sword Cultivator’s cultivation or how exquisite their Sword moves, if they lacked their own Sword Intent, they could never be considered top-tier.

Li Xu had no Sword Intent.

He reflected that since joining the Grand Micro Sect, he had diligently practiced every day, being the most hardworking among his peers, the one with the fastest cultivation progress, and the most humble in seeking the Sword Way. Yet Sword Intent remained elusive no matter how he cultivated it.

His master said Sword Intent shouldn’t be forced – it often required experiencing profound emotions or purifying worldly desires to comprehend. In short, it required certain opportunities and fate to obtain.

But Yu Chanyi possessed Sword Intent.

A junior cultivator who had only practiced the Sword Way for three years and opened merely twenty-four inches of Spirit Veins had used her Sword Intent to defeat the head disciple of the Grand Micro Sect.

What had torn the skin of his palms was Yu Chanyi’s Sword Intent; what had defeated him was also Yu Chanyi’s Sword Intent.

If he formed a shield, she became a spear; if he wove a net, she became a needle tip. Nothing could block her, nothing could stop her.

Her Sword Intent charged forward relentlessly, yet felt like dancing on knife edges, constantly giving a sense of hanging by a thread. Once entangled by her Sword Intent, it was like being trapped by seaweed in deep waters, or constricted by a venomous snake. The suffocating killing intent descended like an inescapable net, entangling endlessly, making one feel terrified from the moment of contact, with no possibility of escape.

After a long while, Li Xu finally closed his eyes and declared word by word: “I’ve lost.”

Won… she won?

Wu Xi Lan couldn’t believe it.

She blinked in confusion, her face blank with disbelief that Yu Chanyi had actually defeated Li Xu.

Instinctive joy surged in Wu Xi Lan’s heart. But before she could laugh aloud, she suppressed the laughter in her throat.

At least not now. Wu Xi Lan’s emotions shifted too quickly, making her choke and cough. Seizing these two coughs, she forcibly adjusted her expression from surprise to concern in an extremely short time.

Wu Xi Lan rushed to Li Xu’s side to support him, though her eyes first swept over Yu Chanyi to confirm she was completely unharmed before turning her full attention to Li Xu.

“Are you alright?Wu Xi Lan retrieved a small round box from the cloth bag she always carried, pinched some powdered hemostatic medicine, and applied it to Li Xu’s tiger’s mouth area, saying with utter insincerity, “Fellow Daoist Li, your swordsmanship is extraordinary.” Just now, standing far away, I was instantly captivated by your dashing and elegant posture when wielding the sword, feeling a surge of admiration in my heart. The reason my junior sister managed to win against you must be because you defeated her once before and grew complacent. It’s just a fluke, truly doesn’t count.”

Heaven knew how much Wu Xi Lan wanted to burst out laughing with her hands on her hips, but given that she needed a favor, now was hardly the time to mock Li Xu openly.

Supporting Li Xu into the Medicine Hut, Wu Xi Lan winked twice at Yu Chanyi, who blinked back in confusion, utterly perplexed. Wu Xi Lan sighed softly to herself and instead turned to Li Xu, saying, “Come, come, into my Medicine Hut. I’ll use my best medicine to replenish you.”

Li Xu, however, gave a faint, bitter smile and replied, “It’s my lack of skill that led to my defeat. I accept it wholeheartedly. There’s no need for Fellow Daoist Wu to make excuses for me.”

Hearing this, Wu Xi Lan blinked and dropped her pretense, asking directly, “Well then… do you happen to have Cloud Perch Grass, Moon Gazing Moss, or Deer Frost that you could sell me?”

Li Xu nodded lightly. “Just tell me how much you need.”

“Thirty jin of Cloud Perch Grass, ten jin of Moon Gazing Moss, and three liang of Deer Frost. Do you have all of those?” Wu Xi Lan asked uncertainly. These weren’t common herbs, and if Li Xu didn’t have them readily available, she’d have to settle for buying seeds to grow them herself.

But Li Xu nodded again. “I’ve noted it down.”

“You have all of them?” Wu Xi Lan was surprised.

“I do,” Li Xu confirmed.

Wu Xi Lan was momentarily stunned, her mouth slightly agape as she exclaimed, “Fellow Daoist Li, how do you always have every kind of herb?”

“Honestly, you should give up being a Sword Cultivator. You’d make an excellent Medicine Cultivator! You have no talent for swordsmanship, but you’re exceptionally gifted with herbs! Or even being a gardener would suit you perfectly!” Glancing at Yu Chanyi and then back at Li Xu, Wu Xi Lan offered her sincere advice.

Li Xu: “…”

Clearly, Yu Chanyi’s presence had disrupted Wu Xi Lan’s judgment system for what constituted “a talented Sword Cultivator.”

But Li Xu had nothing to say in response.

Although injured by Yu Chanyi’s Sword Intent, it was merely a sparring match. If Yu Chanyi had truly intended to kill him, she would have, but she only left him with superficial wounds common occurrences in bouts between Sword Cultivators. Even without Wu Xi Lan’s medicine, Li Xu could have healed his wounds in mere moments by circulating his Spiritual power.

But Li Xu didn’t do that.

He had only lost himself completely during the exchange with Yu Chanyi, briefly forgetting his purpose for coming to the Inexhaustible Sect. However, once defeated by her sword, he quickly remembered why he was there

He had entered this small courtyard for Wei Shengming. By letting Wu Xi Lan tend to his wounds, he could stay longer.

As Wu Xi Lan applied the crushed herbs to his injury, Li Xu’s gaze drifted through the window of the Medicine Hut.

Outside in the courtyard, another figure stood before Yu Chanyi unmistakably, it was Wei Shengming.

“How long has it been since your junior brother returned from outside? When does he plan to leave this time?” Li Xu casually brought up the topic with Wu Xi Lan.

Wu Xi Lan replied, “Him? Ever since our junior sister joined the sect, he’s been spending more time here and acting much more normal. But he still comes and goes without a trace, never giving any notice.”

Li Xu asked, “Is he always on good terms with Fellow Daoist Yu?”

“Naturally, I’m closer with our junior sister,” Wu Xi Lan said. “But my junior brother does treat her quite well. After she joined the sect, he started talking more – though all his words are directed at her.”

“Talking more?” Li Xu questioned.

“Of course! Oh, you might not know this, but my junior brother used to never speak a word. Now that he occasionally exchanges a few words with our junior sister, isn’t that talking more?” Wu Xi Lan explained.

Li Xu nodded in agreement and asked, “What do they usually talk about?”

“Who knows?” Wu Xi Lan waved her hand dismissively. “Probably more sword this and sword that – not my cup of tea. Besides, I don’t make a habit of eavesdropping on others’ conversations. Only improper people would do that, don’t you think, Fellow Daoist Li?”

Li Xu choked slightly, coughing quietly as he averted his gaze toward the window.

Outside the window.

Yu Chanyi, seeing that Li Xu had been in the Medicine Hut for so long without emerging, grew concerned that he might be seriously injured. She was about to enter to check on him when a figure suddenly dropped from a tree, blocking her path.

“For Sword Cultivators, getting minor injuries during sparring is common. He’s fine,” Wei Shengming said.

His eyes held an unusual brightness as he reached for Yu Chanyi’s still-unsheathed sword. Just before touching it, he was burned by the last remnants of fading Sword Intent, his pale fingertips immediately beading with blood. He paid no mind to the injury, his greedy gaze fixed on the dissipating Sword Intent as his fingers moved faster toward the burning blade.

Only when his fingertips touched the edge and flesh parted before the blade, a thin line of blood instantly appearing, did he finally stop this mad action.

The Sword Intent had completely subsided, leaving a trail of blood on the sword’s edge.

“What fierce Sword Intent!” Wei Shengming’s eyes shone excessively bright. He looked at his bleeding hand, watching the blood flow unabated, yet he laughed inappropriately. Raising his eyes to Yu Chanyi, he said, “Junior sister, impressive skill.”

Yu Chanyi lifted her sword, using Spiritual power to wipe away the blood droplets he had left on the blade. The cold gleam of the sword reflected her equally frosty eyes. “Not enough.”

“Still not enough,” Yu Chanyi expressed her complete dissatisfaction.

Wei Shengming laughed louder, his laughter turning into coughs that grew increasingly frequent, as if they would shake loose his heart, liver, spleen, lungs, and kidneys.

Amid the intense coughing, Yu Chanyi looked up at Wei Shengming.

His lips were paler than when they first met two years ago, with several cracked lines marring their well-shaped form. Unconsciously, her senior brother seemed to have grown weaker.

Over the past year or so, she had often seen him watching her practice sword forms from the sidelines. But for some reason, while watching, he would often sink into his own bewildering thoughts.

Yu Chanyi could vaguely sense that he seemed to be reminiscing about something, or perhaps missing someone.

It seemed to be something that couldn’t be returned to, or someone he could never see again.
Her swordsmanship improved day by day. In his eyes, there was solace and admiration, but more than that, an eternal, undiminishable desolation. The unfathomable sorrow in his gaze only deepened with each passing day.

Yu Chanyi watched as his complexion grew increasingly ashen, often staring vacantly at the scenery beyond the courtyard wall like a living corpse. But now, those gleaming eyes lent him a flicker of vitality.

He was still admiring the blood steadily seeping from his fingertips. After a fit of coughing, he spoke in an uncharacteristically cheerful tone: “I truly wasn’t mistaken such a ferocious temperament.”

“I told you to kill the fear in your heart, yet you chose to plant fear in others’ hearts instead.” His voice carried an elusive laughter.

Wei Shengming had witnessed Li Xu’s entire defeat beneath Yu Chanyi’s sword and had sensed her Sword Intent.

Since Li Xu entered the Inexhaustible Sect, Wei Shengming had noticed the changes in him.

These two years hadn’t been wasted. After his previous victory over Yu Chanyi, Li Xu had cultivation had advanced significantly.returned and practiced his swordsmanship even more diligently. Now, after two years, his

Wei Shengming observed clearly: if today’s Li Xu were to face yesterday’s Yu Chanyi, she likely wouldn’t last a single move.

But today’s Yu Chanyi was no longer yesterday’s Yu Chanyi. This youngster Li Xu, who had followed her relentlessly for two hundred years, deserved to taste some bitterness.

“Is it not allowed?” Yu Chanyi’s eyes remained exceptionally calm.

“Naturally, it is.” Wei Shengming was still savoring her Sword Intent.

That impenetrable, murderous Sword Intent the kind that would instantly lock onto any prey showing the slightest sign of entering her reach, dragging them into her territory to entrap and strangle them.

Truly… such overwhelming killing intent.

Seeing him ignore his bleeding finger as if feeling no pain at all, Yu Chanyi finally couldn’t resist asking: “Doesn’t it hurt?”

Wei Shengming didn’t answer. He raised his finger, watching as the blood quickly trickled down, covering his entire palm. In a daze, he merely stared obsessively, saying nothing.

By then, Li Xu’s wounds had been healed by Wu Xi Lan. After seeing him out of the Medicine Hut, she remembered something and called out to Yu Chanyi: “Little junior sister! Little junior sister!”

Yu Chanyi walked over upon hearing her. Wu Xi Lan shook the pouch of Spirit Coins in her hand: “Look what I brought back from outside?”

The muffled clinking from the pouch indicated a substantial amount of Spirit Coins inside. Yu Chanyi was surprised: “Where did you get so many Spirit Coins, senior sister?”

Wu Xi Lan replied triumphantly: “I made a profitable deal, of course.”

She had no intention of telling Yu Chanyi about today’s dispute with the pharmacy owner in the market. Smiling, she said: “These three thousand Spirit Coins are because of you. Before you go to the Sword Debate Tournament, I must spend them.”

“Come on, while Li Xu hasn’t delivered the herbs yet, I’ll take you to the market to buy some things.”

Wu Xi Lan brought Yu Chanyi to the marketplace.

She already had plans for how to spend the three thousand Spirit Coins.

She led Yu Chanyi to a stall selling Magical Artifacts and purchased an unusual artifact the Celestial Robe.

The Celestial Robe was a magical garment crafted by Star Net Palace, the most expensive and finest magical attire available on the market. Wu Xi Lan had heard of its reputation earlier while setting up a stall in the marketplace. When worn, the Celestial Robe rendered one impervious to blades and immune to spells it was both clothing and an excellent protective Magical Artifact. Its beauty made it exceptionally costly.

Li Xu’s injury during his sword debate with Yu Chanyi had stirred a sense of concern in Wu Xi Lan about the upcoming Sword Debate Tournament: she feared Yu Chanyi might also get hurt during the event.

On ordinary days, Wu Xi Lan wouldn’t dare dream of owning the Celestial Robe. But now, with the three thousand Spirit Coins compensated by the pharmacy owner falling into her lap, plus her habit of secretly saving a few Spirit Coins from household expenses into her private stash, pooling them together made purchasing it not too difficult.

Arriving at the Magical Artifacts stall, she asked the vendor to bring out the Celestial Robe. Holding it in her hands, Wu Xi Lan presented it to Yu Chanyi and said, “Once you wear this Celestial Robe, you’ll be immune to blades and spells. When you go to the Sword Debate Tournament, this will be your armor, so you won’t get injured and suffer unbearable pain without me around to help ease it.”

The Celestial Robe’s pale yellow skirt seemed to cradle flowing clouds and mist, with fabric that shimmered with faint, shifting rays of light, as if woven with fallen stars. Without even touching it, Yu Chanyi could sense the pure, clear Spiritual power emanating from it a pristine force capable of sheltering all living beings. This immediately gave her an idea of how expensive it must be. She refrained from reaching out to touch it and instead firmly told Wu Xi Lan, “I can endure pain.”

Wu Xi Lan couldn’t stand hearing such words; they made her shiver all over. Ignoring Yu Chanyi’s objection, she turned and slammed her pouch of Spirit Coins decisively on the table, declaring, “Vendor, I’ll take this Magical Artifact!”

Practical Sword Cultivators, even when buying protective artifacts, preferred affordable and cost-effective options. The price of the Celestial Robe hadn’t surged during this period and remained unchanged. After purchasing it, Wu Xi Lan glanced at the other artifacts in the shop, which were priced three to four times higher than usual, and let out a soft click of her tongue.

Only at a time like this, buying the Celestial Robe didn’t make her heart ache as much; in fact, she felt like she’d gotten a good deal.

Watching Wu Xi Lan so readily hand over that pouch of Spirit Coins, she felt no regret, but Yu Chanyi began to feel the sting instead. Just as she started to say, “I don’t want it,” a light, calm voice came from beside her, “Your senior sister wanted to buy this Celestial Robe herself, but as a medicine cultivator, she has no use for such attire. Buying it for you to wear fulfills a wish of hers.”

“Why have you followed us here?” Wu Xi Lan’s disdainful voice rang out, “But what you said is quite right.”

“I didn’t come following you,” Wei Shengming tossed a gourd and a box into Yu Chanyi’s arms. “Little junior sister, Chain Gold Mud and Jade Sweet Spring Water, a gift from Yin Hai Wei. He also wishes you a smooth journey.”

Afterward, Wu Xi Lan wasn’t in a hurry to return to the Inexhaustible Sect. The three of them wandered around the marketplace together.

With the herb matter settled, Wu Xi Lan finally had the leisure to stroll at ease.

With the Sword Debate Tournament approaching, the marketplace was crowded with Sword Cultivators from various regions, and there were many unusual items not usually seen on ordinary days.

It was said that these items whether they were sword tassels believed to ward off evil and bring blessings, magical artifacts to ensure safe passage and help participants in the Sword Debate Tournament draw weaker opponents, or pamphlets promising mastery of lethal sword arts in just thirty days all seemed incredibly novel to Wu Xi Lan.

But Wu Xi Lan, having just purchased the Celestial Robe, found her pockets empty. She glanced at Wei Shengming and began scheming.

Wu Xi Lan said, “I bought the Celestial Robe for our junior sister. That fellow named… Yin Hai Wei also gave her something. What about you? As her senior brother, shouldn’t you offer something too?”

Yu Chanyi tugged at Wu Xi Lan’s sleeve. She knew her senior brother’s situation all too well he probably couldn’t produce a single Spirit Coin if he tried. She whispered softly, “Senior sister, those things are all scams. There’s no need to waste money.”

Wei Shengming, however, showed no sign of annoyance or embarrassment.

He didn’t take the graceful exit Yu Chanyi had offered him. Instead, he looked down at her, who was holding the Celestial Robe, and said earnestly, “Little junior sister, if you win the First Prize in this Sword Debate Tournament, I will give you a sword.”

“What kind of sword?” Yu Chanyi’s interest was piqued at the mention of a sword.

Wei Shengming replied, “Naturally, an exceptional one.”

Yu Chanyi said, “It’s a deal.”

Watching Yu Chanyi trust Wei Shengming so implicitly, Wu Xi Lan patted her forehead in frustration. She said to Yu Chanyi, “Little junior sister, you can’t take your senior brother’s words at face value. I know this trick of his all too well. Who’s to say he isn’t betting on you not winning the First Prize so he doesn’t have to give you anything? The world is full of deceit you must never trust others so easily outside.”

Yu Chanyi looked up at Wei Shengming’s expression, wondering if things were really as Wu Xi Lan described. But he showed no intention of refuting her, merely saying, “Your senior sister is absolutely right. I hope you take this lesson to heart, little junior sister.”

With that, he walked ahead. Yu Chanyi hurried after him and asked, “So, senior brother, are you going to give me that sword or not? Will you give it to me on the same day I win the First Prize?”

Wei Shengming didn’t turn back. “I will give it to you, but whether it’ll be on the same day is uncertain. Little junior sister, focus on winning the Sword Debate Tournament first.”

Wu Xi Lan pulled Yu Chanyi back. “Little junior sister, don’t believe him. Listen to how unreliable his words are it’s clearly a lie.”

As the Sword Debate Tournament drew nearer, some impatient cultivators began their journeys early.

The skies above Flame Continent were frequently traversed by Flying Ships. Onboard, crowds of figures could be seen clearly disciples from major sects traveling together to Penglai.

Wu Xi Lan had already prepared all the Elixirs Yu Chanyi would need for the Sword Debate Tournament and packed her bags for her.

The day before Yu Chanyi was to leave for Penglai, Wu Xi Lan called her to the Medicine Hut to have a final talk and give her some last instructions.