Legend of Swordsman

The bastion of the Rock Demon Clan was a wide and large city. Qing Bin and Jian Wushuang had wandered long before they finally came to the bottom of a huge mountain gorge that was deep behind one of the great mountains that overlooked the city.

They were between the massive rocky-faced walls of the deep ravine.

“Here we are, Master Wushuang.” Qing Bin said as they came to a stop, the finger of his outstretched arm pointed to the huge jagged walls. “Look, Master.”

Jian Wushuang looked closely into the distant. What he saw made him froze.

“It’s…”

With his eyes twinkling with awe and amazement, Jian Wushuang saw many marks upon the walls. Unlike the rough faces of the walls, the marks were incredibly precise and smooth with varying depths and declinations, very much similar to the marks left upon a slab of butter by a hot and keen blade.

These were all marks left by swords.

Marks that have cleaved and hewed deep into the solid walls of rock with differing depth; there were nine of them in all.

Jian Wushuang looked at the nine sword marks on the walls of the chasm, feeling horrified and yet amazed.

“Too smooth… These sword marks are just too smooth. How sharp would a sword have to be, to be capable of carving so deeply and smoothly into solid rock? How swift would the skills of its wielder have to be, to be able to harness such power?” Jian Wushuang breathed absent-mindedly as he studied the first sword mark.

The first sword mark was the shallowest of the nine. Despite its age, Jian Wushuang could still faintly perceive the aura left by the stroke; a destructive will to inflict damage that appalled him.

As he examined the mark, Jian Wushuang could slowly envision a figure; the silhouette of a swordsman who swung his sword and left the mark on the wall with finesse and grace.

“Too fast. This stroke is too fast!” Jian Wushuang gasped, astonished before he moved on to the second sword mark.

The second mark was deeper still, containing a richer residue of aura left so long ago.

Jian Wushuang could envision once more the figure of the swordsman brandishing his blade. The dance of his sword bore the vestiges of the same swordsmanship, the only difference that this second mark was left by a stroke swifter than the first!

Already the stroke which had birthed the first sword mark was fast enough to amaze Jian Wushuang, but the stroke that had created the second mark was even faster still.

Then he saw the third, the fourth and the subsequent marks that followed. As the marks became deeper and deeper, the swordsman from his vision demonstrated the strokes of his swordsmanship with speeds that outvied one after another, growing increasingly faster and faster.

Finally, he saw the ninth and the final sword mark…

The mark cleaved deep into the rock that it appeared it could even sunder the mountain half. It clearly bore the traces of the strongest force unleashed by the swiftest stroke.

In his vision, Jian Wushuang could fully visualize the silhouette of the swordsman showing to him the swordsmanship in its fullness.

The speed of the stroke was what left him horrified.

It was so fast that not even Jian Wushuang could see it clearly.

It bore such terrible swiftness that Jian Wushuang knew, even he himself would only be helpless before such an overwhelming speed.

Finally, he saw the ninth and the final sword mark…

“I believe it was an incredibly powerful swordsman who was once here to meditate on his mastery of swordsmanship and hone them to perfection. The nine marks on the wall of the gorge were left during his training.” Jian Wushuang thought to himself.

All nine marks were left by the very same stroke, repeated again and again. But the differences in the depths of the strokes showed the gradual rise in force that was accorded by the increase of speed in the execution of the stroke.

It was, beyond a doubt, the manifestation of how the swordsman had pushed his skills to its limits step by step.

“What do you think of them, Master Wushuang?” Qing Bin asked as he looked at Jian Wushuang.

“Extremely shocked.” Jian Wushuang answered truthfully.

“Everyone from our clan, those who study swordsmanship, wore the very same amazed and shocked expression that you now wear when they first laid eyes on these marks.” Qing Bin said with a smile.

“It was about twenty thousand years ago when a mysterious swordsman happened to venture here. Struck by a sudden glimpse of inspiration, he stopped here and meditated on his skills. He was then discovered by some of my kin, who had tried to drive him away. But in his act to ward off those who disturbed his meditation, he carelessly cast a blow from his sword that had then created the first mark that you had seen earlier. This terrified everyone present, including Brother Hong.”

“With respects for his skills, Brother Hong commanded that no one were to disturb the meditation of the swordsman. In fact, he had even assigned sentinels who watched for the safety of the swordsman, guarding him peacefully at the entrances of the gorge.”

“For two years, the swordsman remained until his departure. We then discovered the nine sword marks that he had left on the granite wall of the chasm. They were gifts from him, in return for the hospitality that we have accorded him for two years.”

“Compensation?”Jian Wushuang uttered, breaking in into a giggle.

The nine sword marks were a great boon to any swordsman seeking to hone their skills. It was a very heavy gift from the swordsman to the Rock Demon Clan for his two-year-long stay in the ravine.

“Do you know of the name of this master swordsman, Qing Bin?” Jian Wushuang asked.

“I do.” Qing Bin promptly said, “Before he left, he had revealed that his name was Sunrise!”

“Sunrise? The Sunrise Sword Emperor?” Jian Wushuang gasped, his eyes opening wide.

There was but only one swordsman in the entire Green Fire World who bore the name of “Sunrise”. He was none other than the Sunrise Sword Emperor, the undisputed greatest swordsman of the Green Fire World!

“No wonder.” Jian Wushuang said, “No wonder these marks are so powerful and incredible. These are the hallmarks of the skills of the Sunrise Sword Emperor himself.”

Jian Wushuang felt a rapturous delight in his heart as he looked in awe at the sword marks.

It was imperative that he created a stronger Sword Principle. The nine sword marks left by the Sunrise Sword Emperor would be of great hope to that vocation.

Most importantly, the nine swords marks showcased a gradual process to pursue perfection.

“These sword marks…” Jian Wushuang stared at the first sword scar carefully, instantly fascinated by the inspiration it embodied. Within moments, his eyes blinked shut.

“Master Wushuang.”

Qing Bin tried to call out to him, but he saw Jian Wushuang closing his eyes suddenly before he drew his sword and began waving it around as he practiced his strokes in the middle of two lofty mountain faces.

Realizing that Jian Wushuang was ensnared by a similar reverie of an awakening inspiration, Qing Bin retreated silently out of the gorge, leaving Jian Wushuang alone deep in his meditation peacefully.

Completely awashed with a euphoric delirium, Jian Wushuang fell into a deep trance of meditation, losing completely all sense of Time.

In a mere flash, three days had passed, but Jian Wushuang was still deep in his trance, waving his sword in practice. But the speed of his skills had increased substantially.

Floating in mid-air, God Hong, who had returned from his business, and Qing Bin stood abreast side by side, watching at Jian Wushuang who was still inside the gorge.

“Our young friend shares a certain kismet with me and he has great potential. In only two thousand years, he had managed to reach such immense strength. It will be hardly long before he truly becomes an invincible warrior.”

God Hong smiled and then glanced at Qing Bin beside him, saying, “Let no one into the gorge for now. We will leave our young friend here on his own as he mediates peacefully.”