Unsheathed

Chapter 477 (2): One’s Heart Must Contain a Sun and a Moon

Wei Bo appeared under the eaves with a smile, then said, “It’s alright, I can wait.”

Only after an hour had passed did Chen Ping’an open his eyes, and he exhaled as he apologized, “Sorry to keep you waiting.”

“What’s going on?” Wei Bo asked.

A resigned look appeared on Chen Ping’an’s face as he said, “Back when I met Liu Laocheng on Palace Willow Island and heard him talk about his past struggles with his inner demons, I came to realize that the growth in my mental state had been too fast, sacrificing stability in the process.

“After that, Senior Cui also told me that the trial of self-reflection that I endured in Bamboo Scroll Lake was something that only a Golden Core Tier cultivator or even a Nascent Tier cultivator should’ve had to endure. The main problem is that my mental state was shattered alongside my bonded porcelain.

“Over the course of these past few journeys, I’ve been piecing together the shattered remnants through accumulating more experiences and gleaning more insights about the world, but I’m still far from reconstructing a bridge of immortality that can remain resilient against the elements. My woes were only further compounded when I shattered my own scholarly core on Cyan Gorge Island.

“The crux of the problem was that there was a fundamental conflict between the principles in my heart and my real-world experiences. It has nothing to do with Bamboo Scroll Lake, it’s purely a problem within myself.”

Chen Ping’an took a sip of wine, and this time, he was truly attempting to drown his sorrows.

“I once firmly believed that the more principles I knew, the quicker I would be able to strike with my fists and my sword. However, as I came to learn more and more about the complexity of this world and just how much of a gray area existed between good and evil, I became more and more hesitant to strike.

“I wanted to consider as many possibilities about one’s nature as possible, the worst-possible scenario, the best-possible scenario, and everything in between. I would then use my sword techniques to carry out a process of severance and delineation, and only then can I be sure that I’ve done my due diligence, thereby allowing me to strike swiftly, but what if the situation is urgent, and I have to make a split-second judgment?

“What if I won’t have time to slowly and meticulously mull over the situation?”

Wei Bo nodded as he said, “The more correct a principle is, the heavier it weighs. As a pure martial artist, you are placing restrictions upon yourself, and it’s exactly because you’re aware of this that you don’t feel good about yourself.

“Ironically, you were at your most carefree back when you were at your most impoverished point because back then, there were several principles that you firmly believed in without even the shadow of a doubt and would uphold at all costs. For those principles, you’re willing to stomach the most grueling of hardships, and if it’s something that you can’t stomach, then you lash out, even if it’s at the risk of your life.

“That’s why you were able to fully unleash your fist intent against Cai Jinjian, Fu Nanhua, the Mountain-Moving Ape of Sun Scorch Mountain, and Ma Kuxuan of Apricot Blossom Alley. You had no doubt in your own conviction, and you had no regard for whether you lived or died, so your fist intent was extremely pure.”

“That’s right,” Chen Ping’an agreed.

Wei Bo leaned against the pillar beside him as he continued, “That’s why you want to visit the Northern Complete Reed Continent. Your hope is that in such a lawless place, filled with swordsmen and martial artists who are completely self-serving and unreasonable, you’ll also be able to cast aside your inhibitions.

“This is the solution that you thought of after leaving Bamboo Scroll Lake, but after leaving Downtrodden Mountain to visit your old friends, you began to see the world under a new light, and you discovered that your resolve had wavered. You feel like even if you were to travel to the Northern Complete Reed Continent, you would still be just as hesitant and bogged down by yourself.

“Ultimately, people are still people, and even the most detestable people are worthy of sympathy and vice versa, so you still wouldn’t be able to bring yourself to lash out with your fists and your sword without any hesitation.”

Chen Ping’an offered no response as he took a frustrated swig of wine.

“It looks like you’ve found yourself in another irresolvable conundrum. You either become a completely different Chen Ping’an, or you continue to stumble forward, weighed down by your inhibitions. Even if you can progress in your cultivation base as you continue to train your fist and sword techniques, you’ll never achieve the ultimate purity that you desire,” Wei Bo analyzed.

He then suddenly changed the subject as he continued, “You suddenly feel like no matter how far you go and how much you see, there remains something not quite right with this world, but you can’t put your finger on exactly what it is, is that right? Hence, you can only suppress this thought, but it constantly nags at you, refusing to be drowned even by wine, and you can’t discuss this topic with anyone, either.”

Chen Ping’an’s eyes widened in shock. Wei Bo had struck the nail right on the head!

Wei Bo remained in his lackadaisical posture, looking up at the moon as he said, “One’s heart must contain both a sun and a moon, and both are indispensable.”

Chen Ping’an fell deep into thought upon hearing this.

“Seeing as the general direction is correct, you’re bound to reach the right destination, it’s just that it’ll take an ordeal to get there, but that’s nothing new for you, so what’s there to be afraid of?” Wei Bo asked with a smile. “Could it be that now that you no longer have nothing and have some hope in life, you can’t bear to stomach hardships anymore?

“It’s not a bad idea in this situation to assess yourself using the most rudimentary method. Firstly, espousing principles is never a bad thing, and the ability to do so well is a rare virtue. Secondly, you now feel like principles have gotten in the way of your fists and your sword, but even so, do not doubt yourself and think that perhaps espousing principles is wrong.

“The only thing this tells you is that you’re not doing it well enough, that your principles aren’t sufficiently profound and ubiquitous, and your fists and your sword still aren’t formidable enough.”

Chen Ping’an’s eyes lit up slightly, but a wry smile then appeared on his face as he sighed, “It’s much easier said than done.”

“That has nothing to do with me, it’s something for you to deal with,” Wei Bo said.

“You have enlightened me more than even reading ten years’ worth of books could,” Chen Ping’an said with a smile.

“As expected of the owner of Suck-Up Mountain,” Wei Bo chuckled.

Chen Ping’an burst into laughter upon hearing this.

“Is that how you see Downtrodden Mountain as well?”

He then hurriedly stifled his own laughter for fear of waking up the two girls in the main room.

“By the way, there’s been much debate in the Great Li Empire’s imperial court regarding the promotion of the official rank of Gu Can’s father,” Wei Bo suddenly said. “Initially, the Ministry of Rites had intended to promote him to a provincial city god, but Pillar Generals Yuan and Cao were naturally opposed to this idea, and thus, in a never-before-seen turn of events, the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Revenue came together to oppose the Ministry of Rites.

“The situation has recently become even murkier with Old Man Guan’s Ministry of Personnel also getting involved. No one had expected a lowly provincial city god to have stirred up such a powerful vortex in the officialdom that has sucked in so many prominent powers.”

Chen Ping’an patted the bench that he was sitting on as he asked, “All for that vacant position?”

Wei Bo nodded as he replied, “It’s been vacant for too long, and that’s already going against what is customary. Hence, some people from the three branches of the Great Li Empire’s military in the central region of the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent have begun getting funny ideas.”

“I don’t really care about all of that,” Chen Ping’an said with a shake of his head.

Wei Bo smiled as he said, “I’m only telling you all of this to say that everyone has their own problems to deal with, and you’re not the only one who has to suffer through ordeals.”

“That’s easy for you to say,” Chen Ping’an scoffed.

“Alright, we’ve talked enough. Don’t worry about the Iron Talisman River Goddess, I’ll make sure to keep her in line,” Wei Bo concluded.

Chen Ping’an nodded in response.

A thought then occurred to him, and he told Wei Bo about the block of imperial Pine Smoke Ink from the Divine Water Nation.

Wei Bo smiled as he said, “If the asking price was only five lesser heat coins, then that’s a great bargain. The Green Beetle Shop is clearly not fully aware of what they have on their hands. Having said that, they can’t be blamed for that. At the moment, there are very few people who know just how precious the ink block is. I’ll send someone to pay the Green Beetle Shop an urgent visit later.”

“The trip to and from there will also incur expenditures that have to be accounted for,” Chen Ping’an said.

Wei Bo smiled as he asked, “What does that have to do with me? It’s not like I have to make the expenditure. There are countless people within the territory of the Northern Mountain that would be eager to make this trip for me and foot the bill. Regardless of whether it’s five lesser heat coins being spent or perhaps ten, by making this trip, they would be getting me to owe them a favor, and that’s well worth the travel costs.”

For the current Chen Ping’an, that was all it took for him to get a grasp on the situation.

Wei Bo vanished from the spot in a flash, and prior to his departure, he reminded Chen Ping’an that the intercontinental ship was going to be arriving very soon.

In the next instant, Wei Bo arrived atop the majestic mountain god temple on the summit of Cloud Drape Mountain, where he laid down on its rooftop and fell asleep.

————

The first rays of sunshine gently peeked over the horizon.

Pei Qian opened the door in a bleary-eyed manner, armed with her hiking pole, and after swaggering her way to the doorstep, she pointed her hiking pole up at the sky as she yelled, “Gods above, I propose a bet to all of you!

“If I can’t master my unmatched sword techniques today, then my master will instantly appear before me! What do you say? Do you dare to take on my bet? I’ll take your silence as a yes! If you lose but don’t follow through, then you’ll be tarnishing the reputation of all gods!”

With that, Pei Qian skipped into the courtyard, where she was instantly rooted to the spot.

It seemed as if she were experiencing a hallucination of her master sitting under the eaves of Shi Rou’s side room.

Chen Ping’an could see that her dark little face was still as swollen as a steamed bun, and even that was after some of the swelling had been alleviated from the application of medicine, so the two girls had to have been in an utterly pitiful state when they had first returned to the Dragon Spring Prefecture from Go Table Mountain.

“Master? I’m not dreaming, am I?” Pei Qian asked as she rubbed her own eyes vigorously.

“Why don’t you give yourself a slap to find out?” Chen Ping’an suggested with a smile.

Pei Qian blinked momentarily in a daze, then chuckled, “I’m not stupid!”

She then turned to the main room as she yelled, “Big Sister Baoping, my master is here!”

A girl dressed in red quickly made her way out of the room, and the swelling on her face was even more severe than Pei Qian’s, marring her adorable appearance.

She didn’t feel embarrassed by her current appearance and immediately rushed over to Chen Ping’an’s side, where she drew to an abrupt halt as she greeted with a vibrant smile, “Junior Uncle!”

With the two girls standing side by side before him, Chen Ping’an reached out with both hands to compare their heights, and a sullen look instantly appeared on Pei Qian’s face.

Why was it that this was always the first thing that Li Baoping and her master did when they saw her?

Truth be told, Chen Ping’an had been struck by a sense of disbelief when he first caught sight of Little Baoping.

How had she suddenly grown so tall?

Shi Rou brought out a pair of chairs, Li Baoping sat down on one of them. Pei Qian wanted to sit down on the bench beside Chen Ping’an, but upon receiving a glance from Li Baoping, she immediately stood up from the bench and sat down beside her.

Chen Ping’an suppressed his amusement at the sight of their red and swollen faces as he asked, “Have Li Huai and the others already continued northward with Mountain Master Mao?”

Li Baoping nodded vigorously as she replied, “My grandpa will be taking me to catch up to them later, so there’s no need for you to worry, Junior Uncle.”

“Have you met Dong Shuijing yet?” Chen Ping’an asked.

Li Baoping smiled as she replied, “Pei Qian and I already went to Cool Wind Mountain. His wontons were alright, they’re not as good as your cooking.”

Pei Qian’s expression remained stoically unchanged, but internally, she was thinking to herself that Li Baoping had eaten two large bowls of wontons back in Dong Shuijing’s shop.

However, she naturally didn’t dare to say that in her presence. What would she do if Li Baoping became annoyed at her for saying too much and refused to play with her?

“Make sure to visit Shi Chunjia when you’re passing through the capital,” Chen Ping’an said.

Li Baoping nodded as she replied, “I’ve already sent a letter to her, so she knows to expect me.”

“Have you decided if you want to go and study at the school?” Chen Ping’an asked as he turned to Pei Qian.

Pei Qian hung her head as she replied, “I have. Big Sister Baoping has encouraged me to go to school, and she’s been dragging me there every day for the past few days. She says that I have to scout out the school and know my enemy, just as I know myself. I have to get a good grasp on the personalities and tempers of all of the teachers there in order to avoid copping punishments as much as possible.

“Big Sister Baoping also forbade me from showing off my bookcase and from going to school with any talismans plastered to my forehead. There are many more rules that Big Sister Baoping has laid out for me on a piece of paper, and I have to write out those rules once per day.”

Li Baoping patted Pei Qian on the head as she consoled, “You’re enduring these hardships now for smooth sailing further down the line. There’s no need to be afraid of the teachers when you’re at school.

“If you have questions, then ask, and if you get bullied by anyone, don’t just come running back to complain to Big Sister Shi Rou. Instead, make sure to settle the matter on your own at school. What is the most, most, most important thing when going to school?”

“To learn the principles of life from the teachers there. The contents of books only serve as a guide, and it’s important to also accumulate practical experience. It’s best to have both, but if that can’t be achieved, then practical experience must be prioritized over what’s preached in books,” Pei Qian replied in a deflated manner.

Li Baoping nodded in a pleased manner.

Pei Qian turned to Chen Ping’an with her face scrunched up in a pitiable manner as she called out, “Master…”

Li Baoping pressed a hand down onto Pei Qian’s head, and the latter instantly forced a smile onto her face as she said, “I’ll make sure to keep that in mind, Big Sister Baoping! I have a really good memory!”

Chen Ping’an pulled out the wadang inkstone and the pair of seals before handing them to Pei Qian, then smiled as he said, “I bought these for you during the course of my journey. As for Baoping, I didn’t encounter any suitable presents, so I’ll have to owe you for now.”

Pei Qian was ecstatic, then hesitated momentarily before turning to Li Baoping as she offered, “Pick one, Big Sister Baoping, I’ll give one to you!”

“It’s alright, my only hobby is reading travel journals,” Li Baoping replied with a shake of her head.

Pei Qian was a little disappointed to hear this.

All of a sudden, Chen Ping’an pulled out a stack of old books before handing them to Li Baoping as he said, “I picked these out for you on River Viewing Street in Red Candle Town. They’re not very expensive, I hope you don’t mind.”

“You lied to me, Junior Uncle!” Little Baoping yelled as she hugged the books to her chest with a toothy and unladylike grin.

It seemed that her personality hadn’t changed much over the years.

Chen Ping’an then put on an authoritative display as master and junior uncle as he said, “I’m not going to forbid you from messing with wasp hives in the future, but before that, you have to plan out an escape route in advance and carry herbal medicine with you.”

Li Baoping crossed her arms and nodded firmly in response, while Pei Qian prodded the ground with her hiking pole in frustration as she sighed, “It’s all my fault. My Deranged Demon Sword Techniques are still too weak.”

Shi Rou had already opened the doors of the shop, and as she walked into the backyard, she was given a nod by Chen Ping’an, who already knew what she was about to say.

This was no surprise. In the words of Zhu Lian, their young master was keenly observant and possessed unmatched attention to detail, with horizons as broad as mountains and rivers, while also being able to see details as tiny as mustard seeds.

Shi Rou didn’t think that was entirely disingenuous flattery.

“Your grandfather is back, Baoping,” Chen Ping’an said as he rose to his feet.

Little Baoping also stood up from her chair, then jumped up as she said, “I’ll be this tall the next time we meet, Junior Uncle!”

Pei Qian chose to remain silent on the matter as she knew she would only be embarrassing herself taking part in any discussion pertaining to height.

Chen Ping’an pulled out the clay figure of the woman in the veiled hat as he said with a smile, “Give this to Li Huai.”

Li Baoping carefully stowed it away.

Chen Ping’an brought the two girls to the entrance of the shop, where he was met by the Nascent Tier ancestor of the Li Clan, and he cupped his fist in a salute as he greeted, “Welcome, Grandpa Li.”

A pleased smile appeared on the old man’s face as he nodded and praised, “You’ve become a brilliant young man! Our Jewel Small World needs more fine representatives like yourself. Otherwise, people on the outside will think that our town is home to only scoundrels like Ma Kuxuan!”

Chen Ping’an wanted to say something, but ultimately remained silent.

The old man shook his head as he said, “There’s no hurry, just take things slowly. Families can vary drastically in terms of wealth and status, but that has no bearing on the family values that are upheld. The values of our two families are quite similar, so just let things unfold naturally. If you or I have any favors to ask of the other in the future, we can both go ahead without any qualms.”

Chen Ping’an nodded in response. This was the best arrangement for both parties.

Li Baoping departed with her grandfather, but she did so backward, waving farewell to Chen Ping’an as she did so.

Chen Ping’an also waved her farewell with a smile.

All of a sudden, Pei Qian sighed, “The moon goes through its monthly cycle, while people go through cycles of reunion and separation. It’s such a vexing thought that I want to pull my hair out.”

Chen Ping’an immediately flicked her on the forehead.

Pei Qian grimaced in pain, too focused on the stinging sensation on her forehead to focus on her vexation.

————

While Chen Ping’an and Pei Qian were making their way toward Downtrodden Mountain, the latter was constantly racing around the former in circles while boasting about her recent feats. Of course, the defeat that she had suffered at the hands of the wasp hive didn’t count as she had been too complacent.

Over on Downtrodden Mountain, Zhu Lian was painting a portrait of a beautiful woman, namely a deity that he had caught a glimpse of during the Night Travel Banquet, while Zheng Dafeng looked on from the side with a sly grin.

As for Cen Yuanji, it was extraordinary to her that such an accomplished martial artist could also be so adept in the finer arts, and her admiration for Zhu Lian only grew.

On the southern border of the Yellow Court Nation stood a tall and slender man dressed in a robe as white as snow. There was a saber strapped to his waist, and he was accompanied by a pair of twin siblings, an elder sister and a younger brother, both of whom appeared to have been around twelve or thirteen years of age.

As twins, they naturally bore a strong resemblance to one another, but the elder sister had a pair of sharp and fierce eyes that was matched by her sharp aura, and there was a homemade wooden spear on her back. In contrast, her brother appeared more like a warm and kind scholar, carrying a bookcase on his back, while a water canteen was slung across his shoulders.

The two siblings were in-house disciples that the man had taken on during his travels, and both of them were fine martial arts prodigies.

On the Parasol Leaf Continent.

The Jade Tablet Sect.

On the summit of a peaceful mountain that was yet to be “opened” stood a stunningly beautiful woman with a longsword on her back. The mountain summit reached all the way up into the clouds, and she was observing the sea of clouds at her feet.

On the summit of a nearby mountain was an immortal abode surrounded by faint mist, and inside the abode was a handsome young man who was a very prestigious figure in the Jade Tablet Sect. At this moment, the young man had his hands resting on the railing as he looked at the woman in the distance, and he told himself that she was going to be his Dao partner, and that she was the only one that could be his Dao partner.

In the central region of the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent, a man with an impressive physique was making his way down a narrow wilderness path leading to Lake View Academy. There was an ox trailing along behind him, and at this moment, he was thinking of the little girl with the charcoal complexion that he often spoke with back home.

The ox had a pair of long horns, and hanging from one of them were some copybooks, scrolls, and books, while straddled atop the other one was a delightfully handsome white-robed young boy with a mole on his forehead.

However, at this moment, the white-robed young boy appeared on the verge of death from boredom, and he howled with all his might, “Wei Xian, I miss my teacher so much! What do I do? My heart aches with sorrow whenever I think of my teacher traveling the world alone without my to serve him by his side…”

Wei Xian offered no response.

He had already grown accustomed to such outbursts. Even though Wei Xian greatly admired Cui Dongshan, these outbursts were so frequent that he couldn’t help but develop a sense of exasperation toward the latter.

Along their journey, whenever they had some spare time outside of the legitimate matters that they had to attend to, Cui Dongshan’s favorite pastime was causing trouble for his own entertainment. There were naturally lives taken in the process, and the atrociously diabolical ways that he manipulated human hearts had even Wei Xian shuddering in disgust.

From time to time, he would also say and do some things that left Wei Xian at a complete loss for how to react. For example, they had previously passed by an extremely well concealed sect of ghostly cultivators, and not only did Cui Dongshan have a bunch of demonic cultivators dancing on the palm of his hand, he engaged in one battle after another of gradually escalating difficulty, going up tier by tier from the Lower Five Tiers all the way up to the Nascent Tier.

During each battle, he pretended as if he were only just able to come out on top, emerging victoriously while hanging onto life by a thread, and by the end of his act, the entire sect had been completely hamstrung.

Once the cultivators of the sect realized the true extent of Cui Dongshan’s powers, they had no choice but to submit to him as their temporary leader, and he took advantage of the opportunity to arrange a lavish banquet, inviting guests from far and wide.

During the banquet, he began rambling nonsensically once again, and at the mention of his teacher, he made a declaration that left all of the terrified banquet-attendees in a shell-shocked silence, with no one able to come up with a flattering response on the spot.

What he had said was: “I don’t mean to brag, but if I were to ever irk my teacher into fighting me, then it wouldn’t even take more than five minutes before I fell to my knees to beg for my life!”

Following the tense silence, Cui Dongshan casually slapped two more cultivators to death.

“Winter is about to take the place of autumn, yet this poor student is still not in his rightful place by his master’s side..”

Cui Dongshan remained hanging from the ox horn, kicking out erratically like a tantrum-driven child while continuing to wail in grief, startling countless birds into fleeing the nearby forest.