Unsheathed

“You mentioned earlier that you sent a letter encouraging Pei Qian to come to the Sword Qi Great Wall; what about Chen Nuanshu and Zhou Mili?” Qi Jinglong asked. “If you’re not permitting them to come as well, did you explain why in your letter? Given Pei Qian’s devotion to you, I’m sure you can anticipate that she’ll treat your letter like an imperial edict, and she’ll be sure to show it off to her two friends as well.”

“Of course I did,” Chen Ping’an replied with a smile. “This is no laughing matter.”

“Good,” Qi Jinglong approved with a nod.

Chen Ping’an led Qi Jinglong out of the Minute Small World, then said, “Come with me. I wanna show you something.”

At this point, Bai Shou had already made his way down from the Dragon Slaying Cliff and had walked quite a few laps around the hill. He felt it would be a great idea to find someone to draw a pair of portraits for him, one of him at the foot of the mountain and the other of him seated in the pergola.

Once he returned to the Great Emblem Sword Sect, he would show the portraits to everyone on Graceful Peak, and they would surely be astonished. It seemed that if he truly wanted to build a reputation for himself, then he couldn’t rely on Liu Jinglong. Instead, it was much better to turn to Chen Ping’an.

Bai Shou spotted Chen Ping’an and Qi Jinglong as they emerged from the training ground, so he decided to follow them as they made their way to Chen Ping’an’s residence.

Upon seeing the pitiable little residence, a sense of sorrow instantly welled up in Bai Shou’s heart, and he lamented, “My heart goes out to you, Brother Ping’an.”

Chen Ping’an raised a leg, and Bai Shou immediately fled the scene.

He felt a little embarrassed by his own cowardly display, so he casually strolled his way into the residence, then sat down on a chair that was already placed under the eaves and pretended like he owned the place.

He knew that he had to cherish what little time he had left, given that Pei Qian was very likely going to show up any day now.

He could tell that Chen Ping’an and Qi Jinglong were discussing important matters rather than fooling around, so he knew that it was best for him to stay away.

Chen Ping’an led Qi Jinglong into the room with the two tables. On one table were some folding fan frames that were not yet fully polished, as well as many blank, uninscribed fan leaves.

There were also quite a few blank seals and some sheets of paper covered in neat, small text, containing drafts of the contents to be inscribed on the seals and fans.

On the neighboring table was a map of all of the dragon kilns in the Dragon Spring Prefecture.

At the moment, there were many places in the Dragon Spring Prefecture that were still shrouded in mystery, such as the mountain of porcelain, the immortal tomb, and the entrances of the dragon kilns. Those areas were concealed by cloud and mist, and even the passengers of immortal ships that traveled over the prefecture were unable to see those landmarks in their full glory.

Qi Jinglong gently set his wine flagon down onto the table, and as he examined the map, he discovered that the placement of the dragon kilns was far from random. Instead, they formed a long, curved line, and there was a small circle on the map some distance away from the line.

Qi Jinglong pointed at the circle and asked, “Is this the Iron Lock Well?”

Chen Ping’an nodded in response.

Qi Jinglong stared at the map for a moment, then suddenly declared, “This is a Jewel-Bearing Dragon Ascension Diagram.”

“You really do have an incredible eye,” Chen Ping’an praised.

“I’m decently well versed in formations and talismans, so I’m naturally going to be a little more perceptive than you when it comes to things like this,” Qi Jinglong replied in an indifferent manner.

“You’re speaking in the most nonchalant tone while talking about how extraordinary you are. This is a whole new level of showing off.” Chen Ping’an chuckled.

Qi Jinglong gently stroked his fingers over the map with a serious expression, and his eyes narrowed slightly as he said, “Even just by looking at this map, I can feel intense resentment and killing intent. It seems like a true dragon must’ve really wreaked havoc in the area in its dying moments.”

Chen Ping’an tucked his hands up their opposite sleeves, then leaned forward to rest his chin on the table.

Qi Jinglong examined the names of the dragon kilns one by one, and he had one hand clasped behind his back, while his other hand gently traced over the dragon kilns on the map.

“As I suspected, all of these kiln entrances were constructed on the remains of the true dragon corresponding to the important acupoints on its spinal column,” he remarked. “As a result, the pieces of bonded porcelain fired in each dragon kiln naturally possess different innate abilities. The dragon is said to have had nine children, every single one of which is different from all of the others. During my visit to the small town, I went to that arched bridge, as well as the swordsmithing shop that Sage Ruan Qiong opened on the bank of the Dragon Whisker River.

“Those seven wells are rather unremarkable in appearance, but not only do they bear some Buddhist karma, but they are also distantly connected to the remains of the true dragon, and they primarily serve a subjugation purpose. Originally, they were high up in the heavens, but after the Jewel Small World fell and became part of the Great Li Empire, the wells became lodged in the earth instead.

“The western mountains chosen by the Dragon Spring Sword Sect serve as formation eyes that draw fortune into the seven wells, creating a massive formation that funnels an immense amount of mountain and water fortune into Divine Elegance Mountain, where the sect’s ancestral hall is situated. The placement of many of these dragon kilns actually goes against conventional wisdom, yet somehow, all of the prior setup has allowed it to work, and it really is an extraordinary feat.

“For example, if we go by the principles championed by the Naturalists of the Majestic World, this Prosperous Scholar Kiln should be moved down by half an inch on the map, or the neighboring Thriving Martial Kiln should be moved an inch to the right. Only then will they be in balance and complement one another.

“However, those seemingly minor changes would’ve been significant compromises. It’s a real shame that I didn’t take a closer look at the placement of the wells during my visit to the Dragon Spring Prefecture. I should’ve taken to the sky to examine the entire area from above.”

Chen Ping’an understood every single word that came out of Qi Jinglong’s mouth, but when strung together, he had no idea what the latter was talking about. However, he remained silent, merely nodding along with a smile, refusing to contribute or ask any questions.

All of a sudden, Qi Jinglong turned to him and asked, “What are your eight characters? Without that information, this puzzle is too difficult for me to solve. It’s too broad and too deep. Only by using you as an incision point will I have any chance of making any inroads.”

Chen Ping’an set a handful of sunflower seeds down onto the table, which he had also gotten for free, then shook his head.

“You’re already trying to figure things out, so why not let me help you?” Qi Jinglong asked with a tightly furrowed brow. “If I were still a Nascent Tier swordsman, then I would understand, but now that I’ve reached the Upper Five Tiers, the chances of any mishaps occurring are significantly reduced.”

“I’m just not gonna tell you,” Chen Ping’an grinned as he ate some sunflower seeds. “What’re you gonna do about it? Does that piss you off?”

Qi Jinglong was largely unbothered as he sat down in a chair and continued to closely examine the incredibly complex ascending dragon diagram. Occasionally, he would make a hand seal while simultaneously flipping through the pages of the two books on the table.

All the while, Chen Ping’an continued to eat sunflower seeds just for something to do.

“Do you know of Ms. Lu from Water Scripture Mountain?” Qi Jinglong suddenly asked.

“Of course, I’ve heard of Celestial Maiden Lu from Water Scripture Mountain, but she definitely doesn’t know of me, so why do you ask?” Chen Ping’an replied with a puzzled expression. “Oh? Don’t tell me… Did she come to Stalactite Mountain with you? That’s a very impressive amount of sincerity that she’s putting on display! If you ask me, it’s about time that you settled down. You’re really getting up there in age, so it’s about time that you found a Dao partner. On the Sword Qi Great Wall, even the drunkards and gambling addicts look down on single men.”

“She didn’t come with me; we just so happened to meet on Stalactite Mountain,” Qi Jinglong explained. “After that, we came to the Sword Qi Great Wall together.”

Chen Ping’an rolled his eyes in exasperation, then said, “Think about what you just said before you speak to me again.”

A look of realization appeared on Qi Jinglong’s face, and he asked, “What should I do then?”

“There’s no need to do anything,” Chen Ping’an replied in a nonchalant manner. “Just act natural. If she wants to see you, then go and meet her. There’s no need to put on a cold and inhospitable facade to deter her. It’s not like she owes you any money; she simply has feelings for you, and that’s no reason to treat her badly. If you don’t want any misunderstandings, you can simply not actively request to meet her.

“However, when you part ways, regardless of which one of you leaves the Sword Qi Great Wall first, you should go to meet her and bid her farewell. You don’t have anyone that you like at the moment anyway, so you can be more carefree and at ease. If, instead, you go out of your way to act really out of character around her, that’s only going to make it more likely for her to misunderstand.”

Qi Jinglong was enlightened.

Chen Ping’an made his way to the neighboring table and began carefully considering what he was going to write on the blank fan leaf.

After some contemplation, he wrote: “For a lovestruck young maiden, a dashing young prince is akin to a refreshing breeze in the summer heat.”

It was a rather effeminate piece of prose, and there was certainly nothing sophisticated or profound about it. These fans were going to be sold in the silk shop, so he had to cater to his target demographic. He could put a great deal of thought into these inscriptions and make them very deep and thought-provoking, but that would hardly be appealing at all to the women visiting the silk shop, and the fans could end up having no takers.

Qi Jinglong looked down at the inscription on the fan with a speechless expression.

He really wanted to take back most of the praise that he had given to Chen Ping’an earlier. He had been a traveling salesman throughout the entire course of his journey across the Northern Complete Reed Continent, and even now, he was still clearly constantly thinking about how to make money!

“Even while working hard in your mental cultivation, you still haven’t forgotten your roots as a traveling salesman,” Qi Jinglong remarked with a smile. “You really are always looking to profit wherever you go.”

“Quit trying to mock me,” Chen Ping’an said with a nonchalant grin. “Let’s make a bet. I bet you that Celestial Maiden Lu is going to gift you one of the seals or fans inscribed by me. What do you say?”

“I gotta go,” Qi Jinglong said as he rose to his feet, refusing to entertain Chen Ping’an’s proposal. “I have to go to the top of the city walls to instruct the disciples of our Great Emblem Sword Sect in swordsmanship.”

Chen Ping’an didn’t try to keep him. As they stepped out of the room together, they discovered that Bai Shou was still sitting on the chair outside, and he raised the wine flagon in his hand upon catching sight of Chen Ping’an.

“If you’re still around when Pei Qian gets here, I’ll make sure to tell her to go easy on you,” Chen Ping’an said with a smile.

“You don’t have to do that.” Bai Shou scoffed. “It’s not like I actually can’t beat her in a fight. I just can’t bring myself to go all-out against her because she’s a girl, she’s really young, and she only recently started training martial arts. Even if I beat her, there’s no glory to be had, and that’s why I don’t want to fight her again.”

“I’m going to give you one chance to reconsider, then tell me what you really want to say,” Chen Ping’an said with a sneer.

Bai Shou immediately stood up and made his way to Chen Ping’an’s side, then offered up the flagon of wine with both hands as he implored, “Please convince Pei Qian not to challenge me to any further battles. It’s only going to harm our relationship.”

Chen Ping’an took the flagon from Bai Shou, then slapped him on the head and reprimanded, “Regardless of whether you’re in the Armory or elsewhere in the city, make sure you talk less and cultivate more. That mouth of yours is going to get you into trouble around these parts if you’re not careful.”

“Put a little more respect on my name, Chen Ping’an!” Bai Shou snapped in an enraged voice. “Who are you to talk down to me like you’re my senior?!”

“How about this? I’ll accept you as a sworn brother of mine if you dare to refer to me as your brother in front of Pei Qian once she gets here?” Chen Ping’an proposed with a smile.

Bai Shou weighed up his options for a moment, then decided, “We can continue to be brothers after Pei Qian is gone.”

Chen Ping’an sneered. “What a little coward you are.”

Bai Shou made a sword seal with his hands and looked up into the heavens as he declared, “A courageous and graceful man should not fight with a little girl.”

An amused grin appeared on Chen Ping’an’s face as he patted him on the head.

He felt like it was a good thing for Qi Jinglong to have a disciple like him. Otherwise, it would not be a good thing if they were both so silent and serious all the time.

Chen Ping’an escorted Qi Jinglong to the entrance of the Ning Manor, and Bai Shou quickly made his way down the steps.

He then turned back to Chen Ping’an with a look of schadenfreude and teased, “Your challenger is coming soon! Make sure to keep your hands to yourself!”

“You’re not going to reprimand him?” Chen Ping’an asked as he turned to Qi Jinglong with an exasperated expression.

Qi Jinglong turned to Bai Shou and said, “There are some truths that you don’t have to articulate.”

He then turned and extended a bow to Nalan Yexing as a gesture of farewell, and Bai Shou quickly followed suit.

The two of them left the city and set off back to the Armory.

Chen Ping’an stood beside Nalan Yexing, and the latter smiled and said, “Before going into seclusion, Young Mistress Ning asked me to pass a message on to you. Her message is: ‘Don’t lose.’”

Chen Ping’an was very relieved.

“In that case, I know how much power I’ll have to use.”

He had a good grasp of his and Yu Juanfu’s respective levels back when they were both at the pinnacle of the sixth tier. Prior to his training under Li Er, he had been an inferior martial artist to Yu Juanfu, but by the time he overcame his Vajra Body Tier bottleneck, he had already surpassed Yu Juanfu.

Setting aside Cao Ci, whom Chen Ping’an had been chasing after this entire time, he didn’t want to lose to any other martial artist of the same cultivation base, nor could he afford to allow himself to lose.

As for Cao Ci, Chen Ping’an would gladly lose three more, even thirty more consecutive sparring matches to him. As long as Cao Ci was still willing to fight him, Chen Ping’an would be up to the challenge, and no number of defeats would harm his confidence in the slightest.

What I’m aspiring toward are Mr. Qi’s teachings, Cui Cheng’s fist intent, and the ultimate freedom that the strong get to enjoy as described by A’Liang. Hence, I have no rivals aside from myself. Chen Ping’an is Chen Ping’an’s only adversary.

With that in mind, Chen Ping’an was brimming with confidence and fist intent, and Nalan Yexing turned to him with a surprised expression, seemingly taken aback by the sudden shift in his disposition.

Fully fit and raring to go, Chen Ping’an immediately… relegated himself to a sickbed for half a month.

Upon arriving in the city, Yu Juanfu immediately issued an open challenge to Chen Ping’an for three sparring matches. However, she quickly found out that Chen Ping’an hadn’t set foot outside the Ning Manor even once over the past half-month, proclaiming to everyone that he was sick. She was astonished to hear this. How could there exist such a shameless pure martial artist under the heavens?

Had Cao Ci misspoken or made a misjudgment? Cao Ci had once told her that among all of the martial artists under the heavens around their age, he was in a league of his own, with Chen Ping’an close behind, while everyone else, including Yu Juanfu, was far behind them.

Whenever Cao Ci spoke on such matters, he was always incredibly serious. He never gave anyone a word of undue praise, nor would he underestimate anyone’s abilities.

His assessment of Chen Ping’an was as follows. “Chen Ping’an is a man of immense mental fortitude, and the path that he walks is one that is extremely solid and consistent, so if you lose to him once, then there’s a very good chance that you’ll continue to lose to him in every single one of your subsequent battles. The same may apply even to me, which is why I’m never going to give him the opportunity to catch up to me.”

All of a sudden, Yu Juanfu rose to her feet with an indignant expression.

How is a coward like Chen Ping’an worthy of such high praise from Cao Ci?! He’s been openly challenged by a martial artist of the same cultivation base, yet he’s hiding in the Ning Manor like a turtle in its shell! Is it because he’s wary of the power of the Yu Clan behind me? But how is a pure martial artist supposed to make any progress if they’re scared of every little thing?

After her meal of flatbread and water, she put her water bottle into her bag, then handed it off to Sword Immortal Ku Xia for safekeeping. From there, she traveled northward, then leaped onto the city wall before stepping over the edge and began running vertically down the wall toward the earth.

When she was still several hundred feet above the ground, she stomped heavily down onto the city wall, sending herself shooting forward like an arrow.

After drifting down onto the ground, she continued rushing toward the city with singleminded focus.