Unsheathed

An unfamiliar boy had come to the wine shop and ordered a flagon of the cheapest wine.

Business was very quiet at the shop on this day, which was very rare.

Thus, the incredibly handsome white-robed young boy was very lucky, and he was able to claim a seat at a table. However, his complexion was slightly pale, indicating that he was not in the best of health.

Zhang Jiazhen fetched him a flagon of wine, a bowl, and a dish of pickled vegetables, then informed him to wait for the bowl of free yangchun noodles that was still to come.

The customer opened the flagon before taking a whiff of the wine inside, then raised his head and exclaimed in an authentic Sword Qi Great Wall dialect, ”Such a massive bowl, such fragrant immortal wine, and free pickled vegetables and yangchun noodles?! Are you sure all of this only costs a snowflake coin, not a lesser heat coin?! How could there possibly exist such an outrageous bargain? You better not try to scam me! I am a mighty cultivator with powerful backers, so you’re going to regret it if you try to scam me!”

Zhang Jiazhen had heard many customer complaints, but it was the first time he had ever heard anyone complain about the wine being too cheap. Clearly, this was an outsider from the Majestic World. Otherwise, even the native sword immortals or the affluent individuals from Taixiang Street and Ink Stick Street only ever complained about wine being too expensive, or how terribly the cheap wine tasted.

”You can rest assured that this is not a scam,” Zhang Jiazhen promised with a smile. ”It really does only cost one snowflake coin.”

Cui Dongshan pushed the flagon away from him, then tucked his hands up their opposite sleeves and shook his head as he said, ”I don’t dare to drink this wine. It’s too cheap; there must be something fishy going on here!”

An old swordsman from a neighboring table moved over to sit down beside Cui Dongshan, then smiled and said, ”You’re fluent in our dialect, but I’ve never seen you before, so you must be an outsider. If you don’t want to drink this flagon of wine, then I’ll buy it from you.”

Cui Dongshan hurriedly grabbed the flagon and clutched it to himself upon hearing this.

”Who says I’m selling my wine? Do I look like someone who’s short on money?”

The old swordsman was feeling a little exasperated. In his mind, Chen Ping’an had always had a very sharp eye, so why was it that he had picked out such an inept shill on this occasion?

”You’re shilling for the second shopkeeper as well, right?” the old swordsman asked through his mind’s lake. ”I understand that you have good intentions, but you’re doing a terrible job. You’re making it far too obvious that you’re shilling for the second shopkeeper. Did you come here to do this of your own accord? I’m sure the second shopkeeper would’ve never told you to say this.”

Sure enough, another old swordsman who insisted on squatting by the side of the street to drink instead of sitting down at a table sneered, ”Looks like that shameless second shopkeeper found a complete novice to help him out. Is this your first time doing something like this? The second shopkeeper didn’t get a chance to teach you the ropes yet, is that it?

“I suppose that makes sense. He’s scammed us out of so much money that he must be too busy counting his money to train new shills. Before the second shopkeeper came, our Sword Qi Great Wall only ever had gambling shills, but he’s really been a pioneer in the shill industry! Why doesn’t he go found a sect?”

The old swordsman had just lost a large sum of money betting on Chen Ping’an earlier today, and he continued, ”I wasn’t talking about you, Die Zhang. If it isn’t for the fact that you’re the one running this place, I wouldn’t come here to drink even if I were so poor that I could only afford to drink water!”

Die Zhang was completely unbothered. In Chen Ping’an’s words, customers were free to badmouth him all they wanted. If they grew thirsty from hurling too many insults at him, then they would have to buy more wine to quench their parched throats. However, for those who came once solely to insult him, then never came again, they were purely here to vent for the price of one snowflake coin.

For those people, Chen Ping’an requested Die Zhang to inform him of their names and appearances, and he would be sure to go and meet them and address their complaints at some point, in a friendly and amicable fashion, of course.

Another customer at another table shook his head and said, ”The second shopkeeper is indeed as scummy as they come, but I don’t think he would be stupid enough to hire someone like this. I’d say this is most likely a shill from another wine shop who was sent here to spite the second shopkeeper. Come, lemme offer you a toast. Your methods are a little crude, but for someone so young, you’re displaying a lot of courage to be pitting yourself against the second shopkeeper, and for that, you’re worthy of my respect.”

Die Zhang just so happened to pass by that table, and she gently knocked on his table with a displeased expression.

The customer put down his bowl of wine in a sheepish manner, then smiled apologetically and said, ”We have nothing against you, Die Zhang. We just feel really bad that you’ve found yourself such a shady business partner, and that he’s dragging your reputation down with him.”

The customer was feeling rather sorry for himself. He had been falsely identified by Die Zhang as a dissenter when, in reality, he was also a shill. He had received personal instructions from the second shopkeeper, teaching him what to do in this situation, but he had gone a little overboard in his execution.

However, he was able to take solace in the fact that he had earned quite a bit of money from working with the second shopkeeper. After running betting stations to scam everyone out of their money, the second shopkeeper would always split the spoils with his inner circle. As for how much everyone received, that was entirely down to the second shopkeeper.

For those who were able to get a cut of the profits, the second shopkeeper had told them from the very beginning that there was no need for them to thank him. Instead, they could simply express their gratitude by coming to drink frequently at his shop.

A great deal of mental cultivation was required to be able to drink at the wine shop, but over time, once one learned the tricks of the trade, they would begin to enjoy the process.

For example, those who drank regularly at the wine shop had developed a habit of examining others, trying to spot details that would reveal whether those around them were friend or foe.

The man felt like he had to have been one of the wiser, more accomplished, and senior figures among the second shopkeeper’s many shills. In the beginning, he only drank here because the wine was cheap, but after drinking so much Bamboo Sea Small World wine, he had really begun to take a liking to its taste.

Cui Dongshan pulled out a snowflake coin, then gently set it down onto the table and began drinking.

When it came to examining the hearts of others, even Chen Ping’an couldn’t compare with Cui Dongshan, let alone the drunkards and gamblers at the wine shop.

Over the past year that Chen Ping’an had spent on the Sword Qi Great Wall, it had appeared that everything that he had done had been rather haphazard and lacking in direction, but in Cui Dongshan’s eyes, it was actually all very simple and clear.

In reality, he was only doing one thing: borrowing external power.

The first step toward accomplishing this goal was the four battles he won against Qi Shou, Pang Yuanji, and the others. After that, he had gained many allies, including Chen Sanqiu, Yan Zhuo, the entire Ning Manor, Zuo You, all of the sword immortals who came to his wine shop to drink and inscribe safety tablets, as well as all those on the Sword Qi Great Wall who had purchased his seals and fans.

Once he accomplished this objective, he would be able to ensure self-preservation and do some things beyond that.

Self-preservation wasn’t just about survival but also about preserving one’s mental sanctity. As long as one was willing to scrutinize and ponder one’s own actions to try to ensure that one was doing no harm to others, one would already be setting oneself apart from everyone else, regardless of whether one could actually accomplish that objective. Even if one didn’t ponder such matters, they may not necessarily bring harm to others, but it would naturally be better if they were willing to consider such things.

However, in Cui Dongshan’s eyes, Chen Ping’an was still seeing the world in an overly simplistic way, where kindness begets kindness and evil only gives rise to more evil.

As for the possibility that kindness could lead to evil and vice versa, that was not something that he had considered much up to this point. Why was it that on the subject of the ghost bride that came up during their conversation outside Chen Ping’an’s ancestral residence on Clay Vase Alley, Cui Dongshan had intentionally made something that was very simple seem so complicated?

Was it just to make things more difficult for Chen Ping’an? Of course not. He knew that Chen Ping’an was definitely aware that he didn’t have bad intentions, but he still didn’t quite understand the significance behind his words for now.

However, Cui Dongshan was in no hurry. As long as every step that Chen Ping’an took was firm and stable, it didn’t matter if he walked a little slowly.

Bringing benefit to others was a good thing, but it couldn’t be in the form of charity. Otherwise, the beneficiary would take the things given to them for granted, and unnecessary karmic ties would be formed.

Was Chen Ping’an more like Qi Jingchun, or was he more like Cui Chan?

Why was it that Cui Chan had set up that trial of self-reflection for Chen Ping’an in Bamboo Scroll Lake in an attempt to see who would truly come out on top between himself and Qi Jingchun?

It was because Cui Chan had noticed that over time, Chen Ping’an had become very similar to him. Qi Jingchun was already dead, so he couldn’t concede his defeat, but even so, Cui Chan wanted to be able to get one back over him. It would be immensely satisfying to him if, after all of Qi Jingchun’s prudent selection, he ended up placing his hopes in another ”Cui Chan.”

Qi Jingchun had spent sixty years pondering in the Jewel Small World, and if the one that he ultimately felt could save himself and others was actually someone like Cui Chan, then that would undoubtedly be a resounding moral victory for Cui Chan.

Why was it that the Scholarly Sage had split Cui Chan’s soul into two to give rise to Cui Dongshan? It was because he wanted to give Cui Chan a taste of his own medicine and show him that he wasn’t entirely correct.

Cui Dongshan drank a bowl of wine, then sampled the dish of pickled vegetables. It was a little too salty. His teacher was still too scrupulous a businessman. He was using too much salt.

Was the old scholar hoping that his final disciple would only observe the good and evil in others? No, he had far higher hopes than that.

So what if he could see the good and evil in others? Chen Ping’an had already set himself on a path that placed him in opposition to himself long ago. Seeing the good and evil in others would certainly benefit him greatly, but it still wasn’t enough.

What the old scholar truly wanted was for Chen Ping’an to look deeper into the hearts of others and examine the countless faces of human nature. Once one learned to do this, they would come to discover that the concepts of good and evil were far more complex and nuanced than they appeared on the surface.

This concerned another trivial event that had taken place many years ago.

At the time, Qi Jingchun no longer wanted to play Go with Cui Chan, so he went to the old scholar and asked if there was a type of Go in which both players could win.

The old scholar had been drinking some wine, and after hearing this question, he immediately burst into laughter and choked on his wine, and he was quickly brought to tears as the wine came sputtering out of his mouth.

A’Liang’s gaze was fixed on the old scholar’s wine with a hint of longing in his eyes, and he casually replied, ”If you don’t play, then you won’t lose. If you don’t lose, then you’ve already won. It’s just like how not spending money is already an indirect form of earning money.”

Zuo You had been watching A’Liang with a vigilant eye, making sure the latter didn’t steal any of the old scholar’s wine, and his answer was, ”If I become such a skilled Go player someday that I can beat anyone, but I choose to lose in a subtle fashion that keeps my opponent oblivious, then we’ll both have won.”

Cui Chan was sitting on the doorstep, leaning against the doorframe as he smiled and said, ”Without breaking the rules of the game, victory for both players is only a possibility with an infinitely large board. Otherwise, it’s impossible.”

Finally, Qi Jingchun turned to the old scholar to hear his answer.

The old scholar smiled and said, ”This is a complicated question, one that I’ll have to think over before I give you an answer. Maybe I’ll have an answer once I’m finished with my wine.”

”In that case, please drink faster, Teacher,” Qi Jingchun implored.

The old scholar smiled and nodded in response, putting on a confident display, but after finishing his wine, he rose to his feet in an unsteady fashion, pretending to be heavily inebriated, and went to take his midday nap.

Cui Dongshan set down his chopsticks and looked down at the square table, which resembled a Go board in shape. He looked at the wine flagon and bowl on the table, then heaved a faint sigh before standing up to depart.

Upon arriving at the Ning Manor, Cui Dongshan knocked on the gate, and it was opened by Nalan Yexing.

”I’m Dongshan, Grandpa Nalan,” Cui Dongshan said with a smile. ”I’m sure my teacher often spoke of me to you.”

Nalan Yexing was indeed aware that Cui Dongshan was Chen Ping’an’s student, but he wasn’t aware that Cui Dongshan wasn’t very bright. It was quite a pity, considering he was so pretty to look at.

After Nalan Yexing closed the gate, Cui Dongshan asked with a puzzled expression, ”Grandpa Nalan, why are you only at the Unpolished Jade Tier when you clearly possess the aptitude to become an Ascension Tier swordsman? Could it be that you were severely injured by some mighty demon, resulting in a drop in your cultivation base? But if that’s the case, then why isn’t this a story known throughout the entire Majestic World?”

Nalan Yexing merely smiled and offered no response. There was clearly some important component missing in Cui Dongshan’s head, so there was no need to be bothered by anything that he said.

Cui Dongshan fished a yellow bead out of his sleeve, then handed it to Nalan Yexing and said, ”I just so happen to have a pill that I picked up from the side of the street. It most likely won’t be able to help you return to the Immortal Tier, but it should be able to help you consolidate your current Unpolished Jade Tier cultivation base.”

Nalan Yexing wasn’t able to see anything special about the pill, so he chose not to accept it, and he smiled and said, ”I appreciate the thought, but you can keep the pill.”

Cui Dongshan’s hand remained outstretched as he smiled and added, ”Did I mention that I picked this up on the side of Iridescent Cloud Street in White Emperor City?”

Nalan Yexing’s hand instantly shot forward like lightning, grabbing the pill out of Cui Dongshan’s hand before tucking it up his sleeve as he complained in a disingenuous fashion, ”You really didn’t have to, Dongshan. We’re all family here; it makes you feel like a stranger if you’re too polite and formal with me.”

”You’re right!” Cui Dongshan exclaimed as he extended a hand toward Nalan Yexing again. ”My sincerest apologies, Senior. Please return the pill to me.”

Nalan Yexing gently pushed Cui Dongshan’s hand away, then said in a meaningful and heartfelt manner, ”You can’t ask for a gift to be returned after you’ve given it. That makes us seem even more like strangers.”

Cui Dongshan seemed to have been convinced by Nalan Yexing, and he turned and ran out of the Ning Manor, then stood at the entrance and said, ”Alright, you can return the pill to me now.”

Nalan Yexing was completely flabbergasted. This bastard is definitely Chen Ping’an’s student, alright, and he’s probably the one who takes after him the most!

Nalan Yexing pretended not to have heard anything as he turned and left, but he didn’t close the gate.

Cui Dongshan hurriedly followed after Nalan Yexing, closing the door behind himself before asking, ”You know who I am now, right, Grandpa Nalan?”

”I do,” Nalan Yexing replied with a smile. ”Aren’t you Chen Ping’an’s most prized student?”

”I only wish I had picked up more pills for you in White Emperor City,” Cui Dongshan said with a sigh. All of a sudden, he extended two fingers and caught something beside his head.

”That confirms it then,” Nalan Yexing said with a smile. ”Looks like you weren’t lying about the pills coming from White Emperor City.”

”Please don’t tell anyone that I’m a mere Ascension Tier cultivator, Grandpa Nalan,” Cui Dongshan implored as he lowered his hand. ”I’m worried that the sword immortals here will look down on me for my lowly cultivation base, and that’ll bring embarrassment to my teacher.”

Nalan Yexing was beginning to feel a little mentally drained. Thus far, he had not been able to predict anything that Cui Dongshan had said and done.

He had attacked Cui Dongshan with his flying sword just now to test him. At Cui Dongshan’s cultivation base, he could’ve either chosen to completely ignore the attack or ward it off with ease.

However, he had chosen to catch the flying sword, but he had intentionally done so a split-second too late, and as a result, he had caught the sword by the hilt instead of the blade.

Nalan Yexing was very concerned.

Cui Dongshan walked alongside Nalan Yexing while examining the Ning Manor around him, and he grinned as he asked, ”Are you worried that I’m too bad a person to be my teacher’s student, or are you worried that my teacher isn’t good enough for me? Are you more inclined to believe that I don’t have the smarts to outwit my teacher, or are you more confident in my teacher’s judgment and foresight?

“Are you worried that I’m shrouded in too much mystery, or are you concerned that the sword immortals in and around the Ning Manor won’t be capable of breaking through the shroud of mystery that surrounds me? As an Upper Five Tiers swordsman who’s fallen from grace, should you have faith in the power of your flying sword, or should you instead trust that your sword heart is sufficiently pure and untainted? Even if you had a belief, are you now lacking in confidence after hearing all of these questions?”

A grim look appeared on Nalan Yexing’s face.

”Those who are powerful always think that they can get by with the least amount of effort possible, but that’s not a good habit to get into,” Cui Dongshan mused.

Nalan Yexing’s brows had become tightly furrowed.

Cui Dongshan cast his gaze toward the nearby Dragon Slaying Cliff, then sighed, ”With my teacher around, we have nothing to worry about, but that doesn’t mean we should take him for granted, Brother Nalan.”

Nalan Yexing remained silent.

Upon arriving at Chen Ping’an’s residence, Cui Dongshan discovered that Pei Qian and Cao Qinglang were also there.

He extended a grateful bow toward Nalan Yexing, who turned to Chen Ping’an with a smile and said, ”Dongshan and I are getting along really well with each other. He even proposed that we become sworn brothers!”

”I see,” Chen Ping’an mused with a smile and a nod.

Pei Qian secretly gave Cui Dongshan a thumbs-up, while Cui Dongshan turned to Nalan Yexing with a dazed expression and protested, ”I didn’t say anything of the sort, Grandpa Nalan!”

”Is your teacher going to believe me, or believe you?” Nalan Yexing asked with a smile.

Cui Dongshan hurriedly clapped a hand to his forehead, then began swaying unsteadily on his feet.

”I drank too much at the wine shop earlier... What did I say? Where am I? Who am I?”

Nalan Yexing departed, feeling very pleased with his handiwork, while Chen Ping’an turned to Cui Dongshan with a disapproving glare.

Cui Dongshan sat down on the doorstep and said, ”Please pardon me, Teacher. I need to get some fresh air so I can sober up a bit.”

Chen Ping’an returned to his seat and continued inscribing fans with Cao Qinglang’s assistance.

Pei Qian also wanted to help, but Chen Ping’an didn’t allow it, so she sat down alone at the neighboring table, making faces at Cui Dongshan while pointing at the two gifts given to her by Ning Yao.

The two items consisted of a string of prayer beads of an unknown material with 108 figures engraved upon them, and a pair of Go stone jars. Upon opening the lid, the jar of white stones would produce a cloud of white mist, while the jar of black stones would release a dark cloud much like the ones conjured up by Old Dragon Rainbringers.

The string of prayer beads was numerous, but there were even more stones in the two jars. In Pei Qian’s eyes, it didn’t matter if these were prized treasures, as she had always taken a quantity over quality approach when accumulating wealth. Otherwise, how would she be able to come out on top against Li Huai when they next simulated a battle against each other?

Cui Dongshan gave her a smile and a nod, then raised a hand toward her, and she also raised her hand to simulate striking palms with him from afar.

Pei Qian sat on the bench with her legs crossed, swaying her head and shoulders from side to side in a gleeful fashion.

”What did I say about sitting etiquette?” Chen Ping’an asked with his back to Pei Qian, and she immediately fell completely still, as if an immobilizing spell had been cast upon her.

Cui Dongshan leaned against the doorframe, smiling as he watched the three people in the room.

Pei Qian was very pleased with herself.

She had developed a habit of kowtowing to the Bodhisattva whenever she encountered a Buddhist monastery.

She frequently visited the Heart Manifestation Temple whenever she was in the capital of the Southern Garden Nation, but for some reason, when she joined her palms in prayer, they weren’t pressed flush together. Instead, she seemed to have been carefully cupping something between them.

According to Zhong Qiu, Pei Qian had also visited an old friend. Of course, it wasn’t any of her current friends, such as Chen Nuanshu, Zhou Mili, Zhu Lian, or Lu Baixiang. Instead, it was a native girl from the capital of the Southern Garden Nation, and she had just gotten married not long ago. Before leaving the Lotus Root Blessed Land, Pei Qian went to the girl and apologized, but the girl didn’t say whether she accepted it.

Pei Qian hadn’t changed much in height or appearance, so the girl had recognized her, but she pretended not to know who Pei Qian was because she was afraid. After the two girls parted ways, Pei Qian went to Zhong Qiu and asked him if he could do her a favor. Zhong Qiu agreed, and Pei Qian asked him if what she was doing was right.

Zhong Qiu told her she wasn’t doing anything wrong, but it wasn’t necessarily a good thing, and he didn’t say whether her actions could atone for her mistakes, either. Instead, he merely told her to go and ask her master. However, at the time, she didn’t dare to ask Chen Ping’an. In her words, she would only dare to raise the question once her master liked her a bit more.

Cao Qinglang was fully focused on his inscriptions, looking much like a certain someone.

He was always serious and diligent in everything that he did. Thus, he needed someone to teach him that not all things were to be taken seriously. Otherwise, he ran the risk of driving himself into corners.

It was unclear whether Cao Qinglang knew why his teacher was willing to put so much effort into going around as a traveling salesman. A major motivating factor behind this was the guilt he harbored toward Cao Qinglang, even though he had nothing to do with the hardships Cao Qinglang had experienced in his formative years.

There were many things that Cui Dongshan wasn’t going to say. Instead, he would leave it to Chen Ping’an to instruct and enlighten his students and disciples.

The three people in the room were actually all very similar to one another in a certain regard, and that was that all of them had lost their parents at a very young age.

At some point, all three of them would’ve been very resistant to the idea of growing up, but had no choice but to do so.

Cui Dongshan continued to sit on the doorstep with his hiking pole resting across his lap, staring off into space in a daze.

All of a sudden, Chen Ping’an slammed the table, giving both Cao Qinglang and Pei Qian a massive fright.

”How come the one that has the best handwriting out of all of us isn’t doing anything right now?!” Chen Ping’an yelled with a look of mock fury on his face.

”You’re right, Teacher!” Cao Qinglang exclaimed.

”Get over here!” Pei Qian yelled as she also slammed the table.

Cui Dongshan hurriedly rose to his feet and strode over the doorstep to get to work.

Chen Ping’an stood up, then sat down at Pei Qian’s table and said, ”I’ll teach you to play Go.”

Pei Qian nodded vigorously as she opened the Go stone jars and said, ”Junior Brother has taught me before, but I’m a really slow learner, and I can only beat him now if he gives me a handicap of ten stones.”

Chen Ping’an’s smile remained unchanged, but he stood up again as he said, ”In that case, let’s do this another time. For now, continue with your transcriptions. What are you standing around for? Go and fetch your little bookcase!”

Pei Qian immediately nodded in response before rushing out of the room, and she quickly returned with her little bamboo bookcase on her back, only to discover that Chen Ping’an was still standing at the entrance of the room, looking at her.

”Were you waiting for me, Master?” Pei Qian asked with a puzzled expression.

”I don’t recall you being this fast when you went to fetch water with a bucket all those years ago,” Chen Ping’an said with a smile.

A hint of panic appeared on Pei Qian’s face.

Chen Ping’an gave her a reassuring pat on the head as he smiled and said, ”Even back then, Cao Qinglang and I waited for you to return home, so we’re definitely going to wait for you now.”

”I’m the one who met Teacher first!” Cui Dongshan complained.

”I met Master a little earlier than Cao Qinglang,” Pei Qian declared with a joyful smile.

Cao Qinglang merely smiled and remained silent.

”What’s the point in competing over something like that? Are you trying to show me up?!” Pei Qian snapped as she turned to Cui Dongshan with a threatening expression.

”You’re right, Senior Sister. I was wrong,” Cui Dongshan conceded as he raised his hands up in surrender.

”Go make your transcriptions,” Chen Ping’an urged as he patted Pei Qian on the head.

In the end, he sat down on the doorstep where Cui Dongshan had been earlier, drinking out of his Sword Nurturing Gourd.

The three people in the room each took a glance at him, then returned to their work.

”I’ll make you a hiking pole as well, Cao Qinglang,” Chen Ping’an suddenly said.

”I already have one, Teacher,” Cao Qinglang replied.

”But it’s not from me,” Chen Ping’an insisted with a smile. ”If you don’t mind, you can take the one in the room across from this one.”

Cao Qinglang thought about it for a moment, then replied, ”I’ll take anything as long as it’s not straw sandals.”

Cui Dongshan rolled his head and grumbled, ”You don’t know how good you have it!”

Pei Qian also pulled a funny face and muttered under her breath, ”How could he take something so precious for granted?”

However, her mood was lifted as soon as she spotted the little bamboo bookcase on the table. That was something that only she had.

Chen Ping’an smiled as he looked up at the sky through the skywell. The Bamboo Sea Small World wine on this day was particularly to his liking.