Martial Cultivator

Chen Chao led the little girl out of the shop. The girl looked around curiously at the bustling scenes along the main street. Though her background was not considered poor, this Divine Capital was the grandest city in the world. Anyone seeing it for the first time would likely be amazed by the sights.

Holding her hand, Chen Chao walked slowly and patiently. If it were someone with a short temper, they would have long grown irritated by the little girl’s constant stopping, turning her head every three steps, pausing every five.

But Chen Chao considered himself to have at least that much patience.

The little girl wore a cotton jacket with floral prints, cheerful and festive. Though there was still some snow lingering after the New Year, it no longer fully blanketed the streets. Before long, snowflakes dusted her head, like scattered grains of salt.

Chen Chao bought her a skewer of candied hawthorn and slowly showed her around the Divine Capital.

Chewing on the candied fruit, the little girl’s cheeks were stuffed full, looking like buns.

Looking at her, Chen Chao was reminded of the scene he had seen in the Moon’s Reflection in Water, his thoughts began to drift. Back then, after receiving the message, he had rushed from Mountain Creek without even having time to find this little girl.

But just as Li Yu had said, some fates were predestined, entangled from previous lives. So when Chen Chao turned back, he happened to run into the family while they were out on the road.

At the time, Chen Chao had only wanted to try his luck and said he wished to take the little girl as a disciple and bring her to the Divine Capital. He had not held out much hope, given how young she was and the distance from home. If it were him, he would not have been at ease either.

Of course, before that, Chen Chao had introduced himself properly.

Although the couple was reluctant, they had not agreed simply because of Chen Chao’s status. It was because the little girl clung tightly to him and would not let go, insisting on going with him no matter what.

Eventually, with no other choice, the couple decided to let her follow Chen Chao to the Divine Capital.

In the end, the woman looked at Chen Chao with tear-filled eyes and said softly, “Your Excellency, I entrust my daughter to you. I don’t ask that you teach her great skills, only that Your Excellency takes care of her and let her suffer a little less. If, in the end, you find that this daughter of mine truly isn’t suited, just let us know, and we’ll come and bring her back.”

Such is the heart of all parents under heaven.

Chen Chao understood that all too well.

When he later brought the little girl back to the Divine Capital, he slowed his pace somewhat, also to accommodate her emotions. But what surprised him most was that the little girl was not anything like he had imagined; instead, she was unexpectedly well-behaved.

Throughout the journey, Chen Chao hardly had to worry about her.

”Master...”

Chen Chao had been lost in thought. When he came back to his senses, it was because of the little girl’s call. He glanced at her, she was standing in front of a stall selling sugar figurines, unable to move her feet. She had looked at Chen Chao for a long while and only called out after she could not hold it in any longer.

Chen Chao smiled and bought one that had just been made. It was a little kite, very pretty.

But as he looked at the kite, Chen Chao felt somewhat sad, finding himself missing Elder Sister.

The little girl seemed to sense Chen Chao’s melancholy and tugged gently at his sleeve, shaking her head and saying, “Master, don’t be sad...”

Chen Chao smiled and shook his head.

......

......

Over at the bamboo building, two young men had just finished a day of cultivation. Both were exhausted and collapsed onto the steps. Yu Qingfeng rolled up his sleeves and flung a handful of sweat from his arm right onto the other youth’s face.

He Liang wiped it off and just grinned foolishly.

Yu Qingfeng said with some annoyance, “Silly boy, your temper’s way too good.”

He Liang replied matter-of-factly, “It’s nothing. What, should I beat up Senior Brother over something so small?”

Yu Qingfeng clicked his tongue and said, “Little He, don’t tell me you actually have thoughts like that?”

He Liang shook his head, smiled, and said that he did not.

Yu Qingfeng looked at He Liang and sighed. But then, after a moment’s thought, he grew disgruntled and said, “Little He, these past few days the voices cursing Master in the Divine Capital have been getting louder and louder. I even want to find a couple of scholars and give them a good beating.”

He Liang nodded, but then shook his head again. He had been getting cold looks at the academy lately, but Mistress had made it very clear: these matters had to be handled by Master himself once he returned. They could not take any action. It was because they were his disciples, and anything they did might implicate their master.

“But Master’s done so much, and people are still cursing him. It just doesn’t make sense.”

He Liang looked puzzled. Sometimes, he really did not understand why things happened the way they did. He felt he still did not fully understand the world.

Yu Qingfeng nodded and said angrily, “Anyway, if Master comes back and tells me to go beat someone up, I’m going for sure. What about you, Little He? Will you do it?”

He Liang nodded. “Whatever Master tells me to do, I’ll do it. But I don’t think Master would do that, right? “After all, Mistress is a scholar too. Master would have to consider her feelings, right?”

Yu Qingfeng had just been speaking offhandedly, but hearing He Liang say that made him pause and think more seriously. That did make sense, considering that connection, their master definitely would not take action himself.

“How about this, at night, the two of us will go out, find a big sack, and grab the scholar who’s been cursing him the loudest. Then, we give him a good thrashing!”

Yu Qingfeng said in all seriousness, “When the time comes, act quickly, run fast, it’s guaranteed that no one will see us. Then no one will be able to say anything.”

He Liang furrowed his brows and stayed silent for a long while.

”Little He, you little rascal, are you scared?”

Yu Qingfeng smacked his junior brother on the head unhappily. The latter shook his head and said, “I’m thinking about how to do it.”

Hearing that, Yu Qingfeng burst into loud laughter and threw an arm around He Liang. “Not bad, it’s gotta be the two of us, no one else would work!”

He Liang gave a silly laugh, but just then, he heard his senior brother cry out in pain. He was about to get up when a voice rang out:

”Don’t freaking corrupt Little He, you stinking brat!”

A young man with a saber hanging at his waist appeared behind the two of them; it was he who had just smacked them.

Yu Qingfeng was initially a bit angry, but when he saw who it was, he immediately shut his mouth with an aggrieved expression, only casting a resentful glance at He Liang.

He Liang did not dare say a word.

But soon he saw that a cute little girl was standing next to his master who had returned to the Divine Capital.

He Liang opened his mouth.

Yu Qingfeng jumped up and gaped. “Master, you really brought back a little junior sister?!”

That was the very question He Liang had just thought of but had not dared to ask.

Chen Chao smiled as he looked at his two disciples.

The little girl sized up the two young boys in front of her curiously.

Yu Qingfeng clicked his tongue and said, “Master, I admire you so much.”

“Ning Qingnian.”

Chen Chao said softly, ”Your little junior sister.”

Then Chen Chao pointed at Yu Qingfeng and said with a smile, “Your eldest senior brother, named Yu Qingfeng. He’s not a good person, remember to stay away from him.”

Yu Qingfeng was displeased, but did not dare to talk back.

“Second senior brother, He Liang. He’s an honest kid.”

Chen Chao pointed at He Liang, who scratched his head and gave a silly grin.

”Senior brothers...”

The little girl spoke in a childish voice, looking at the two senior brothers in front of her.

Yu Qingfeng and He Liang exchanged a glance, then said in unison, “Greetings, Little Junior Sister!”

And just like that, Chen Chao’s three disciples had officially met.

Yu Qingfeng had just finished speaking when he patted his chest and declared with conviction, “Master, don’t worry. As long as I’m here, no one will ever bully Little Junior Sister!”

He Liang followed up, “Me too!”

Chen Chao smiled and said, “Let’s hope you guys keep your word.”

Yu Qingfeng suddenly thought of something and asked curiously, “Master, Junior Sister is this young, and you’re already going to teach her cultivation? Tempering the body is so painful, can Little Junior Sister take it?”

Speaking of this, Chen Chao himself had not really thought it through. After all, there were very few female martial artists in this world, and even fewer with any renown. To put it plainly, for women to cultivate the martial path meant enduring a great deal of hardship. A woman’s temperament was generally less tenacious than men’s, and oftentimes, it was easy to give up halfway.

But at this point, Chen Chao was not even worried about that. After all, the little girl in front of him was simply too young. If she started cultivating now, it might not be appropriate.

“It’s fine either way. Little Junior Sister has us to protect her, she can just train casually in the future.”

Yu Qingfeng saw things clearly on his part. He did not think their little junior sister would achieve much anyway. As long as she had a master like theirs and the two of them as senior brothers, was that not good enough?

Chen Chao rolled his eyes at Yu Qingfeng and said, “Let me tell you the truth, your Little Junior Sister’s aptitude is better than both of yours. In the future, even if she trains casually, she’ll still be the number one female martial artist in the world.”

Yu Qingfeng let out a cry of surprise and widened his eyes. Originally, he thought their master had just randomly picked up a little girl on the road, but unexpectedly, their master had actually chosen her carefully?

He Liang smiled happily and said, “That’s great. Then in the future, no one will dare to bully Little Junior Sister.”

Chen Chao thought for a moment and said, “For the time being, don’t let your Little Junior Sister temper her body. Teach her some breathing and circulation techniques, however long she’s willing to practice is up to her. Little He, you put more effort into it. Qingfeng, talk less.”

Chen Chao knew his two disciples’ temperaments very well. If Yu Qingfeng were the one teaching, there was no telling what might come of it.

He Liang smiled and said, “Master, don’t worry. I’ll be diligent, just afraid I won’t teach well enough.”

Chen Chao shook his head. That was not something he was worried about. He had truly examined the little girl’s aptitude, and it was indeed excellent.

Besides, this was only the early stage of laying the foundation. Later on, he would naturally take over personally.

After giving instructions, Chen Chao gave a few words of guidance to the little girl. The little girl did not pester him further, but simply pointed at the saber at Chen Chao’s waist and said, “Master, the saber...”

Chen Chao glanced at Yu Qingfeng.

Yu Qingfeng immediately understood and said, “Master, I’ll go make a bamboo saber for Little Junior Sister right away!”

......

......

Divine Capital, Shen Family.

A figure knocked on the Shen Family’s gate under the light snow.

The steward who was guarding the gate looked impatiently at the person in front of him. Seeing that the man was dressed plainly, he grew somewhat disdainful.

“What do you want?”

The man took a calling card from his chest and handed it to the steward, smiling as he said, “My lord will come to visit the Shen Family tomorrow. Please inform them.”

The steward was stunned, then grew a little angry. What kind of etiquette was this for delivering a visiting card? Not even giving the host family time to prepare, but directly informing them?

“Your lord? Who’s your lord? Is he so exalted?”

The steward did not take the card and instead looked at the man with narrowed eyes.

The man did not get angry, he just smiled and said, “My lord is the Lord Warden Commander.”

The steward froze and subconsciously asked, “What did you say?”

The man repeated patiently, “My lord is the Lord Warden Commander.”

This time, the steward heard clearly. He stared at the card in the man’s hand, rooted to the spot, not reaching out to take it.

At this moment, the steward wished he could leave Divine Capital right away and never return.

That name card in the man’s hand now looked like a death-hastening talisman.