Unsheathed

All of this was still bearable, but there was something else that happened every once in a while, and it left Chen Ping’an feeling rather exasperated.

All of the people staying on the third floor of the ship were quite wealthy, and as time passed, Chen Ping’an came to realize that there was a couple staying in the room directly above his. It was a very affectionate couple, and Chen Ping’an would often hear the sound of their bed creaking through their floorboards.

On top of that, the woman seemed to be unable to help herself, and she was constantly “weeping” to accompany the creaking of the bed, sounding as if she were suffering great pain at the hands of her partner. This left Chen Ping’an quite confused.

If whatever they were doing was so painful for the woman, then why did she oblige every single time? If they were a couple, then why couldn’t they talk things out and come to a resolution?

Chen Ping’an was very exasperated by this, but it wasn’t like he could just go upstairs and knock on their door, then urge the man to be more gentle with his Dao partner. This was not something that an outsider like Chen Ping’an could comment on, and it was both inappropriate and unreasonable.

Furthermore, Chen Ping’an discovered while he was quite bothered by these noises, the group of men staying in the room to his left treated this like a spectacle to be enjoyed. Whenever the sound of the creaking bed and the whimpering woman rang out, they would immediately cease their conversation, then begin chuckling to themselves.

From the few snippets that were spoken in the official dialect of Eastern Treasured Vial Continent that Chen Ping’an could understand, it seemed that they were discussing what they were hearing in earnest, as if they were offering their commentary on a spectacular battle.

As for the immortals staying in the room on the right, they would also fall silent whenever these noises rang out, but Chen Ping’an noticed that their breathing would always become a little more ragged.

It seemed that just like him, they were also very much bothered by these sounds.

Thankfully, it didn’t take long before Chen Ping’an began to gradually grow accustomed to these disruptions.

On one occasion, the bed overhead was shaking so violently that it was as if an earthquake were taking place, and the woman was wailing at the top of her lungs. Even so, Chen Ping’an merely enjoyed a meal of dried rations washed down with wine in silence, praying to himself that the floorboards overhead would remain firm so the bed didn’t fall onto his head.

During the few stops that the ship made at other ferry stations, Chen Ping’an was unable to witness the scenery of the southern nations as he didn’t even open the door of his room once.

After some calculation, Chen Ping’an realized that it was roughly time for crops to be planted, so everyone back home would currently be busy toiling away in the fields right now. Even some of the fit young men working at the dragon kilns would be permitted to go home and help out in the fields.

Back when Old Man Yao was still working as a dragon kiln overseer, he was always very lenient when it came to things like this even though he had a short temper and a scathing tongue. Other kilns would generally only allow a three-day break for the harvest, yet Old Man Yao would always give four or five days.

Unfortunately, for the likes of Liu Xianyang and Chen Ping’an, who didn’t have any agricultural land passed down to them, they had to pick up the slack during this time in the absence of their colleagues, so they always ended up even more tired than the people toiling away in the fields.

Having already practiced his fist techniques for an entire month, Chen Ping’an had completed over 100,000 repetitions without even realizing it.

What he was most interested in right now was finding out how many of the fishermen on the ship had managed to catch those precious river dragons two fingers in length or longer.

One day, as Chen Ping’an was taking a break from his fist technique practice at around noon, he suddenly noticed that while he still had wine to spare in his Sword Nurturing Gourd, he was running short on dried rations.

Hence, he tied the wine gourd to his waist, picked up his sword case, then put on his straw sandals before opening the door of his room for the first time on this journey so he could go to one of the nearby restaurants on the ship to purchase some food.

Due to the fact that it was lunchtime, the group of men staying in the room to his left just so happened to be coming out for a meal as well, and Chen Ping’an intentionally slowed down slightly so that he would be lagging five or six steps behind the group of men.

One of them couldn’t help but turn around to look at this strange neighbor of theirs, whom they were seeing only for the first time, but one of the other men in his group quickly tugged on his sleeve, warning him not to start any trouble, and the man immediately looked away.

Even though Chen Ping’an was only a young boy traveling on his own, he gave off a sense of calmness and composure well beyond his years, indicating that he was not to be messed with.

In the mortal world, this group of men were all figures of decently lofty status, hailing from renowned sects in the cultivation world, but if this unremarkable-looking young boy just so happened to be a powerful swordsman with a short temper, then they could be in a world of trouble.

Elsewhere, the chances of encountering a powerful swordsman would be slim to none, but that probability was far greater here on this ship.

At times, simply being in the wrong place at the wrong time was enough to get someone killed. If they were to get on the bad side of a powerful cultivator, then they weren’t going to be able to talk their way out of a beating, or worse.

One of the men had once witnessed a swordsman in action from afar. The young swordsman had only been around twenty years of age, but after summoning his bonded flying sword, he was truly an incredible sight to behold, slicing through all of his opposition as if he were cutting down nothing but sheaves of wheat.

He had been facing several vastly renowned martial artists at the time, ones who proclaimed that they had indestructible bodies capable of keeping out even the sharpest of blades, but in the blink of an eye, all of them had fallen dead with holes pierced through their heads.

The average Qi refiner wasn’t necessarily a threat. For example, those who followed the Hundred Schools of Thought weren’t necessarily all that adept in combat, but provoking a swordsman, particularly one that possessed a bonded flying sword, was no different from courting death.

The trip to the restaurant was smooth and uneventful, and Chen Ping’an purchased several kilograms of dry biscuits from the waiter at the packed restaurant, then returned to his room. After closing the door, he opened the door to his balcony and began enjoying a meal of dry biscuit and wine while standing outside.

There were still some fishermen on the first floor of the louchuan, but even after watching them for about half an hour while enjoying his meal, Chen Ping’an only saw some ordinary fish being caught. Not even a single river dragon youngling was hooked up.

All of a sudden, Chen Ping’an recalled an occasion where he and Cui Chan had been on the summit of a tall mountain. The latter had been very bored, so he decided to follow Chen Ping’an in practicing his standing meditation. While doing this, he told Chen Ping’an that there was an exceptional blessed land under the heavens, and it was very special in that it was connected to another small world, thereby making it unique from all other blessed lands.

The Divine Edict Sect of Eastern Treasured Vial Continent’s Southern Stream Nation had a blessed land to itself, the Limpid Pond Blessed Land. Blessed lands were rather similar to subsidiary nations, except they were larger and independent.

On top of that, the laws of the Heavenly Dao inside also varied, and they were often able to produce abundant resources that could be continuously harvested by large immortal sects. As a result of this abundance of resources, many prodigious figures often hailed from these blessed lands, and these prodigies were generally taken by the nations or sects that owned those blessed lands, thereby further bolstering their power.

Chen Ping’an had never been out of Eastern Treasured Vial Continent during the past two long journeys that he had taken, but even so, he had already developed an idea of just how vast the world was and seen something of the unfathomable things that Old Man Yang had mentioned to him.

During this southbound journey, Chen Ping’an had missed out on going to many places, some of which he simply didn’t have the time to visit as it would’ve meant taking massive detours. An example of this was the Cyan Gorge Island of Bamboo Scroll Lake, where Gu Can and his mother were.

Chen Ping’an hoped that they were thriving there, and that they weren’t being oppressed than others. Even more than that, he hoped that once Gu Can became a Qi refiner, he wouldn’t become like Fu Nanhua, who oppressed those weaker than him.

As for some other places, they weren’t appropriate for him to visit, such as Sun Scorch Mountain, where the Mountain-moving Ape was; Light Breeze City, where the Xu Clan was based; and True Martial Mountain, where Ma Kuxuan was staying.

No one would listen to him in those places, and he wasn’t strong enough to pound his reasoning into the people there with his fists, either. Without the protection of Mr. Qi and Master Ruan, he would be stomped to death like an ant, and he was well aware of this.

While visiting the restaurant to stock up on rations, Chen Ping’an heard that the ship was going to be stopping at a ferry station for half a day the next day. That allowed passengers the opportunity to disembark from the ship to see the scenery, and there was a renowned scenic spot near the ferry station called the Ancient Pond.

At this time of year, the flowers were in full bloom, so all one had to do was exit the ferry station and travel to the nearest hill, and they would be greeted by the aroma of flowers and the sound of birdsong the entire way there.

If one were lucky, then they would be able to capture a floral spirit known as the aromatic herb maiden, which gave off a natural faint fragrance.. They were the best living perfume sachets, and they were loved by all female Qi refiners and wealthy women.

Chen Ping’an felt like it would be a good idea to leave the ship and go out for some fresh air. After staying in his room for an entire month, he felt as if he were about to grow mold.

After making up his mind, Chen Ping’an returned to his room from the balcony, then closed the door and continued to practice his walking meditation.

The next day, the ship docked at the ferry station, and the hall inside the underground cave was petite and exquisitely constructed, with a fragrant aroma wafting through the air. In contrast with the large and majestic ferry station of Water Combing Nation, this one possessed a different charm.

The ship was swaying slightly, and Chen Ping’an got out of bed after sleeping for less than four hours, then began to pack up his things. He was going to take all of his belongings with him as he didn’t dare to leave any of it in his room. Perhaps the Ancient Pond had a resounding reputation, or was a really great place. In any case, almost all of the passengers on the ship had decided to disembark here for sightseeing.

After disembarking from the ship, Chen Ping’an was walking with the crowd, and a group of people was next to him, led by a pair of elderly individuals. Both of them had deep and mellow auras that resembled slow-flowing river water, and walked with a special type of lightness in their step.

Even if they weren’t immortals of the Middle Five Tiers, they couldn’t be far away. Chen Ping’an didn’t have a habit of eavesdropping on others, but during the past month that he had spent in his room, he had no choice but to overhear the conversations of his neighbor, and now that he was he was hearing a conversation take place in the official dialect of Eastern Treasured Vial Continent, which had proven to be a rare occurrence, he couldn’t help but listen.

They discussed the state of the continent, some of the latest news from all of the major cultivating sects, and also some news pertaining to some renowned figures on the continent.

The conversation was quite casual, and the two elderly individuals did most of the speaking, while the young juniors beside them listened respectfully and very rarely interjected. Even if questions were raised, they were done so very respectfully, and that was very different from what Chen Ping’an had seen from others, such as Liu Baqiao of Wind Lightning Field, Cao Jun of the Cao Clan on Clay Vase Alley, and Zhou Ju of Lake View Academy, none of whom had such formal and restrained personalities.

In the end, one of the elderly men, who had a small black jade seal hanging from his waist, spoke about how the Kun ship of Ceremony Mountain had crashed, resulting in severe casualties, and he was quite riled up by the subject.

He acknowledged that the Dao Master of Complete Reed Continent possessed unfathomable powers, and that perhaps even Dao Master Qi Zhen of Eastern Treasured Vial Continent didn’t stand a chance against him, but he was quite critical of how domineering and overbearing the Dao Master was.

On the subject of the Kun ship crash, a concerned look appeared on the other old man’s face, and he said that while it was true that the Kun ship had been struck by a vast eruption of sword Qi, he didn’t think that any of the empires in the central region of Eastern Treasured Vial Continent were responsible for the incident as none of them stood to benefit from striking down a ship from Complete Reed Continent.

Only a major empire could have been able to gather so much sword Qi at once, but the emperor of that empire had already personally traveled to Divine Edict Sect and sworn that he wasn’t behind this.

After that, he had met Dao Master Xie Shi of Complete Reed Continent while accompanied by Qi Zhen to explain the situation, in response to which Xie Shi had merely said that the cultivators of Complete Reed Continent would investigate this matter and come to their own conclusion.

Chen Ping’an stopped in his tracks, then abruptly sped up to catch up to the pair of elderly men as he cupped his fist in a salute and asked, “Pardon my interruption, esteemed immortals, but may I ask how the passengers on the Kun ship fared in the wake of the crash?”

One of the elderly men paid no heed to Chen Ping’an at all, not even sparing a glance at him as he continued onward.

In contrast, the old man with the seal hanging from his waist stopped as he replied in a patient manner, “Almost all of the passengers of the Lower Five Tiers were killed, and even many of the passengers of the Middle Five Tiers perished.”

At the time, countless streaks of sword Qi had suddenly erupted into the sky from a hill, an attack not inferior to an all-out strike from a sword immortal of the Upper Five Tiers, so it was no surprise that there were such severe casualties.

The old man could see that this piece of news had dealt Chen Ping’an a heavy blow, and he heaved a faint sigh before continuing onward.

Meanwhile, Chen Ping’an stood rooted to the spot, and even as he was jostled by a few of the people passing by, he remained completely oblivious. By the time he finally returned to his senses, he discovered that almost everyone else had already emerged from the cave to see the Ancient Pond.

Chen Ping’an slowly made his way to the entrance of the cave to find that it was a bright and sunny day. There was a mountain with a smooth and even slope further away in the distance, and countless vibrant plants and flowers were in full bloom.

After killing the scorpion lady back at the Blusher Prefecture, Chen Ping’an had actually obtained a treasure, but he had decided not to sell it at the Green Beetle Shop. It was an ink brush washer, with circle of text on the underside that read “spring flowers under the autumn moon, spring wind through autumn trees, spring mountains beneath autumn rocks, spring water giving rise to autumn frost”.

The characters were tiny, and they swam around slowly like tadpoles. Chen Ping’an really liked the character for “spring”, and the text also correlated with the names of the pair of maidservants that he had encountered on the Kun ship. At the time, he had felt a little disappointed that there was only “spring water” and no “autumn fruit”. [1]

Otherwise, if he were to ever meet them again, for example, if he were to take the Ceremony Mountain Kun ship again, then he would’ve been sure to show them the washer, not to brag, but just to show them that such interesting coincidences were possible.

Standing at the entrance of the cave, there was no sorrow of grief on Chen Ping’an’s face. Instead, he was merely staring at the wonderful scenery in the distance with a dazed expression.

In the wake of this sobering news, he had suddenly lost interest in the scenery, and in the end, he returned to the ship, then continued to practice his fist techniques in his room.

Close to another month slowly passed by, and in a few more days, the ship would arrive at its destination.

One night, before he had even realized it himself, Chen Ping’an had already completed his 200,000th repetition of walking meditation.

He changed into a set of clean clothes, then stepped onto the balcony outside with his shoes off. It was very rare for the ship to be so quiet, and seeing as there was no one else around, Chen Ping’an gently leaped onto the railing, then sat down onto it as he began to drink out of his wine gourd while facing the neighboring river channel. He drank without any thoughts entering his mind, and before long, he discovered that he had run out of wine.

The Sword Nurturing Gourd had been filled with close to ten liters of fine wine brewed by Sword Water Villa, but some of it had been drunk by Xu Yuanxia and Zhang Shanfeng. The rest of the wine had only been able to last the past two months as Chen Ping’an had been drinking very sparingly.

He shook the wine gourd vigorously, but there really was nothing left.

However, he refused to give up, raising the wine gourd up high and tilting his head back, trying to squeeze out even just a few more drops, but there was not even a single drop left.

Right at this moment, a four-story ship sailed past in the neighboring river channel, and a passenger staying on the top floor also just so happened to be leaning against the railing, getting some fresh air. She looked on with a stunned expression at the sight of the young boy vigorously trying to shake wine out of a Sword Nurturing Gourd, then finally gave up and rested the gourd on his lap with a defeated look on his face.

She felt as if this young boy had to have drunk so much wine that he had turned stupid from inebriation.

With that in mind, she decided to play a little prank on him, raising the green jade wine flagon that she was holding as she yelled, “Over here, little drunkard! I have wine here! You can have it if you want!”

Chen Ping’an cast his gaze toward the young woman in silence.

The green-robed young woman waited for a moment, but received no response, so she decided to toss her flagon straight at Chen Ping’an. The flagon flew through the air in a beautiful arc, but right as it got a few meters away from Chen Ping’an, it suddenly flew back into the young woman’s grasp. She burst into laughter, clearly very much amused by her smart little scheme.

The two ships passed each other by, and Chen Ping’an continued to sit on the railing, expressionless. Had he just stumbled upon an idiot?

After replacing the Sword Nurturing Gourd on his waist, he jumped back down onto the balcony, then went back into his room to continue his fist technique practice.

For the first time on this trip, Chen Ping’an went to the restaurant in the dead of night to buy wine, but the restaurant was already closed for business for the day, so he could only return to his room and continue his practice.

1. The maidservants’ names are Chun Shui and Qiu Shi, which translate to spring water and autumn fruit, respectively. ?