Unsheathed

Chen Ping’an and Cui Dongshan made their way toward the wine shop together.

”Did you manage to convince him, Teacher?” Cui Dongshan asked. ”Is Tao Wen still unwilling to leave the Sword Qi Great Wall, even if he knows that he’s going to die here?”

Just as there were people on the Sword Qi Great Wall like Cui Wei, who wanted to live, there were also those who had pledged themselves to die here like Tao Wen.

There had been many people on both ends of the scale throughout the history of the Sword Qi Great Wall.

Why was it that all of the top sword immortals throughout the history of the Sword Qi Great Wall had been opposed to the principles of the Three Teachings and Hundred Schools of Thought taking root on the Sword Qi Great Wall? It was definitely not just a case of them looking down on those principles. Instead, the reason was that the more one learned, the more they would think, and as a result, their sword heart would no longer be pure. If that were to happen, then the Sword Qi Great Wall would fall very soon.

Even among the current native sword immortals on the Sword Qi Great Wall, very few people were aware of this. Many years ago, the old great sword immortal had personally conjured up a small world atop the city walls, and a collection of sages had gathered to conduct divination, but the outcome had not been that good.

After that, all of the sages, noble scholars, and virtuous scholars from the Etiquette Sage and the Second Sage’s branches were given strict orders to only oversee wartime proceedings whenever they were sent to the Sword Qi Great Wall, and they were forbidden from doing anything outside of that.

There had been some people who were willing to accept the risk of punishment to try and do some things for the betterment of the Sword Qi Great Wall. The native sword immortals of the Sword Qi Great Wall never tried to actively oppress or discourage them, but in the end, all of them simply became disillusioned and gave up.

”All we did was drink, and I didn’t try to persuade him,” Chen Ping’an replied. ”Drinking really does always get in the way of things.”

Chen Ping’an was walking along at a leisurely pace, and Cui Dongshan wasn’t in a hurry, either.

All of the streets and alleys that they passed through held various different stories, all with bad endings.

”What was the outcome of your games against Lin Junbi?” Chen Ping’an asked.

With a rustle of Cui Dongshan’s sleeve, a bouquet of shimmering, golden lotus flowers appeared around the two. This was an illusion that he had conjured up through the use of a secret technique. From the outside, these lotus flowers were only visible to sword immortals of the Upper Five Tiers, and only after seeing the flowers would one be able to eavesdrop on their conversation.

However, witnessing the flowers was already an attempt at forcibly breaking the formation, and Cui Dongshan would be instantly alerted. If there were any sword immortal rude enough to try and eavesdrop on them, then Cui Dongshan would be sure to pay them a visit.

”Lin Junbi is a smart kid, but he’s still too young, so he’s lacking in experience and composure,” Cui Dongshan replied with a smile. ”Of course, I’m a little smarter than him, and I could’ve easily completely ruined his Dao Heart, but there was no need to do that. The one that I truly have gripes with is Mr. Lu Xi, not Lin Junbi. Speaking of Mr. Lu Xi, I can’t believe such a terrible Go player has dared to write a book teaching others how to play Go!

“Apparently, it’s selling quite well too. As a matter of fact, it’s almost on par with the Iridescent Cloud Go Manual in sales in the Shaoyuan Empire! I could’ve forgiven him for his past transgressions, but he’s getting in the way of me making money now, and I can’t stand for that!”

”How is he getting in the way of you making money?” Chen Ping’an asked with a puzzled expression.

”With the exception of a small number of circumstances, I receive some royalties for every single copy of the Iridescent Cloud Go Manual that’s sold in the Majestic World,” Cui Dongshan revealed in an embarrassed manner. ”This wasn’t an arrangement made by White Emperor City. Instead, all of the immortal publishers made this decision on their own for their safety. Of course, I did drop some subtle hints here and there.

“The White Emperor City Lord is not so petty to be bothered by such things, but his subordinates may not be so gracious, and there’s no telling what they could do if they feel slighted, so it’s much better to be safe than sorry. Besides, this gives them an excuse to give money to White Emperor City, and that’s an opportunity that many people would jump on.”

”You better be the one to pay for our drinks later!” Chen Ping’an scoffed with a combination of amusement and exasperation on his face. ”You’re such a shady businessman; you need to drink a few jars of Bamboo Sea Small World wine to cleanse your heart!”

Cui Dongshan immediately agreed, and he complained that the wine was too cheap, the yangchun noodles were too delicious, and the wine shop could be making much more money than it currently was.

”So what happened with Lin Junbi in the end?” Chen Ping’an asked.

”I taught him a lesson, and he was so enlightened by my earnest teachings that he happily agreed to become my pawn,” Cui Dongshan replied with a smile. ”Rest assured, I haven’t altered his Dao Heart in the slightest. If anything, I’ve only affirmed his Dao Heart and mental fortitude. He can learn much more from me than he can from his current teacher. He bears the fortune of the entire Shaoyuan Empire, so he’s definitely destined for great things, but his teacher is holding him back.

“The imperial preceptor of the Shaoyuan Empire is under the misconception that he can slowly mold Lin Junbi into a carbon copy of himself to serve as the future guiding force of the Shaoyuan Empire, but little does he know that Lin Junbi is extremely proud and doesn’t wish to become anyone’s shadow. It’s this pride of his that’s given me an opening.

“By working with each other, both Lin Junbi and I will both get what we want, so it’ll be a mutually beneficial collaboration. Ultimately, I was only willing to enlighten him because his potential makes him worthy of my time. You shouldn’t have asked me this, Teacher. Hearing about such unsavory things will only ruin your appetite for wine.”

”The teacher’s business is the student’s business, so why shouldn’t the student’s business also be the teacher’s business?” Chen Ping’an countered with a shake of his head.

Cui Dongshan lifted a sleeve to his face, pretending as if he had been moved to tears, only for Chen Ping’an to interject, ”Save your flattery. Just make sure to buy more wine from the shop in the future. By the way, Yu Juanfu is quite a decent person, so don’t screw her over.”

”This may not necessarily be a good thing for the Yu Clan, but at the very least, it’s definitely not a bad thing, either,” Cui Dongshan replied with a smile. ”I’ve always been on decent terms with the patriarch of the Yu Clan, so I bear no ill will toward her. Clearly, the Yu Clan has to have played a part in molding her into someone that even you think rather highly of.

“As for the academic culture of the Shaoyuan Empire, that follows a similar principle. To pick a fine pig, you need to first look for a fine pen. As long as you look at the majority and not at outliers, you won’t be led astray.”

Chen Ping’an was silent for a moment, then turned to Cui Dongshan with a smile and said, ”Having a student like you by my side is very reassuring.”

”It’s just a shame that I can’t be with you all the time to take more of a load off your shoulders, Teacher,” Cui Dongshan lamented.

”It’s fine,” Chen Ping’an replied. ”Make sure to keep an eye on Pei Qian and Cao Qinglang’s mental state and cultivation. I know I’m placing a lot of responsibility on you, but that’s what you get for being so capable. Even if you feel disgruntled, I’m going to pretend not to notice.”

”Fundamentally speaking, there’s nothing under the heavens that truly worth feeling disgruntled over,” Cui Dongshan said with a smile. ”Only those with insufficient mental cultivation are quick to anger and complain.”

”Are you trying to teach your teacher a life lesson?” Chen Ping’an asked.

”Of course not, Teacher! I would never!” Cui Dongshan wailed.

”Manipulating the hearts of others is a game akin to playing with fire, so make sure to be careful,” Chen Ping’an warned. ”You must prioritize your own safety first if you wish to protect others over the long term.”

”I understand, Teacher,” Cui Dongshan replied with a nod.

In this world, there was always going to be a price to be paid when preaching principles to others, whether that price be big or small.

For example, Cui Dongshan was temporarily shirking all of the heavy responsibilities that he had back on the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent to come here. Cui Chan hadn’t reprimanded him for this, and the letter that he sent to Cui Dongshan only ordered him to return as quickly as he could. Essentially, he had approved Cui Dongshan’s unannounced leave of absence. However, Cui Dongshan wasn’t one to reciprocate his lenience. Instead, if Cui Chan were going to make a concession, then he would take full advantage.

Cui Dongshan was aware of what Chen Ping’an had done on the Sword Qi Great Wall.

Not only that, but he was even able to get Qi Jinglong involved as well.

Cui Dongshan only ever did things that were simultaneously interesting, worthwhile, and profitable.

Hence, there could only ever be people like Lin Junbi around him, and he could never walk the same path as the likes of Qi Jinglong and Zhong Kui, but the same didn’t apply to Chen Ping’an.

He couldn’t convince his teacher to be like him, so he stopped trying.

The majority of students under the heavens were always trying to gain something from their teachers, whether that be knowledge, renown, protection, wealth...

Cui Dongshan couldn’t be bothered to comment on whether that was good or bad. In any case, he was an exception to this norm, and it hardly mattered what type of relationship other students shared with their teachers.

The wine shop was absolutely packed, so Chen Ping’an and Cui Dongshan squatted down by the side of the street with two flagons of wine. Before long, many unfamiliar swordsmen had gathered around them.

At this point, Cui Dongshan had already made quite a name for himself on the Sword Qi Great Wall. Everyone had heard about his consecutive victories on the Go board against Lin Junbi, so they were aware that he was an exceptional player.

All of the native sword immortals who were also Go players themselves proclaimed that Cui Dongshan was most definitely unmatched in the game on the Sword Qi Great Wall.

This made all of the drunkards and gamblers feel much better about themselves. If Chen Ping’an were Cui Dongshan’s teacher, then he had to be an even better Go player than the latter, so it wasn’t all that shameful to lose so much money to someone so shrewd and calculating.

At the same time, many people felt like they were wrong about Chen Ping’an. They had been denouncing him as a shady bastard this entire time, yet he had never tried to use his Go skills to scam people out of money. Clearly, he still had some semblance of a conscience left.

At the moment, business was booming for the wine shop, so much so that Die Zhang was planning to buy up the two neighboring shops. Initially, she was worried that this was a bad idea, so she had been very timid when bringing up this matter to Chen Ping’an. However, to her surprise, Chen Ping’an had agreed to her idea, and that made her feel like perhaps she was at least somewhat cut out for business after all.

She approached Zhang Jiazhen to discuss his future employment at the wine shop, and he agreed to work full-time in the shop going forward. Additionally, there was also another young man of a similar age from Raincoat Alley by the name of Jiang Qu who also approached Die Zhang in secret in the hopes of securing a job. He told her that he required no wages, and that all he asked for were free meals as compensation for his work.

Of course, Die Zhang didn’t agree. She told him that he would be issued a wage, but in the beginning, it wasn’t going to be a significant one. However, his wage would increase over time if business continued to improve. Recently, Jiang Qu had been frequently visiting Zhang Jiazhen to ask him questions about working at the wine shop, and Zhang Jiazhen was happy to answer his questions. Both of them were of a similar age and had come from similar underprivileged backgrounds, so they quickly got along with one another.

On the way back to the Ning Residence from the wine shop, Cui Dongshan was carrying two jars of Azure Divine Mountain wine that cost five snowflake coins apiece.

All of the drunkards were absolutely aghast upon seeing this. The second shopkeeper was even scamming his own student out of his money, so of course he wasn’t going to spare anyone else!

The self-proclaimed top gambling expert on the Sword Qi Great Wall was a Nascent Tier swordsman who even A’Liang wasn’t able to scam a single copper coin out of, and apparently, he had already begun looking into how he could make money from the second shopkeeper.

Once he figured it out, he would write a book containing his methods and hand them to everyone free of charge as long as they had a drink at the Treasured Light Restaurant, the largest restaurant on the Sword Qi Great Wall. The restaurant was run by the Qi Clan, who clearly intended to give Chen Ping’an a piece of their mind.

Upon opening the gate for Chen Ping’an and Cui Dongshan, Nalan Yexing received an unexpected gift in the form of two flagons of wine. He was so ecstatic that he blurted out an enthusiastic greeting to Cui Dongshan, referring to him as Brother Dongshan. In response, Cui Dongshan respectfully greeted him as Grandpa Nalan. Clearly, Nalan Yexing was trying to screw him over again in front of Chen Ping’an, and he hadn’t learned his lesson from last time.

What Cui Dongshan had said earlier to Bai Lianshuang had only planted a little seed of discontentment in her heart, but this time, Cui Dongshan was going to make sure that Nalan Yexing received a brutal beating from her.

In the Minute Small World at the training ground, Pei Qian was sparring with Granny Bai.

Chen Ping’an didn’t have the heart to go and watch.

He had suffered extremely horrific beatings at the hands of various tenth tier martial artists in the past without even batting an eyelid, but he couldn’t bear to see his disciple being subjected to the same torment.

He was worried that if he went to watch, then he would feel so bad for Pei Qian that he wouldn’t be able to bring himself to reprimand her even if she made mistakes in the future.

In a summer palace outside the city, the Hidden Official was standing on a chair while lifting herself up by her pigtails. The chair was suspended in mid-air, and from her aerial vantage point, she was able to see an enormous map that depicted the entire city in incredible detail.

At the moment, the map was riddled with a series of bright red lines that branched from the Ning Manor to various other places, including Die Zhang’s wine shop, the corner of the alley where Chen Ping’an told his stories, and the spot atop the city walls where Zuo You resided. There were also some other less-frequented places, but all of them were locations that had been visited by Chen Ping’an.

Pang Yuanji had once asked the Hidden Official why she was tracking Chen Ping’an. It wasn’t like he was a spy of the demon tribe, so what was the point in keeping such a close eye on him?

In response, the Hidden Official had told him that she was simply doing this out of boredom. She had no one to fight and no wine to drink, so she had to find a pastime.

This was a very typical answer for her, and Pang Yuanji didn’t ask any further questions.

According to the Hidden Official, she may not have been the best Hidden Official in the history of the Sword Qi Great Wall, but she was definitely up to par. Not only that, but she had made many contributions beyond what was expected of her, yet the old great sword immortal was still constantly on her case, and that was completely unfair.

Luo Shan was still wearing a round-collar brocade robe of the same style as she usually wore, but this one was a different color.

Luo Shan made her way into the main hall of the summer palace, then drew another red line onto the map.

”Why did he take Cui Dongshan to Tao Wen’s residence? What could he be visiting Tao Wen for?” Zhu An mused with a puzzled expression.

”You’re asking me?” Luo Shan scoffed. ”Should I go ask Chen Ping’an or Cui Dongshan?”

”You can go if you want to; I’m not gonna stop you,” Zhu An shrugged.

Luo Shan gave him a displeased glare, but he was completely unfazed.

”He probably went to try and convince Tao Wen not to throw his life away,” the Hidden Official said. ”He’s too soft and sentimental. No wonder I disliked him from the moment I first set eyes on him. He still hasn’t been around on the Sword Qi Great Wall for long enough. If he can still be so sympathetic even after staying on the Sword Qi Great Wall for a long time, then I’d be very impressed. It’s just a shame...”

The Hidden Official’s voice trailed off here, and Luo Shan and Zhu An knew better than to ask her to elaborate.

All of a sudden, the Hidden Official groaned in disappointment, ”Yue Qing survived! What a letdown.”

”Lord Hidden Official, what did the old great sword immortal say to convince Zuo You to spare Yue Qing?” Zhu An asked in a curious manner.

The Hidden Official extended a hand toward him, and he immediately tossed her a flagon of the finest immortal wine from the Treasured Light Restaurant.

The Hidden Official tucked the flagon of wine up her sleeve, then said, ”He probably told Zuo You that all of his junior brothers and junior nephews were watching, and that it was already embarrassing enough that he still hadn’t managed to kill Yue Qing even after so many attacks, so he may as well spare Yue Qing to save himself from further embarrassment.”

Luo Shan and Zhu An exchanged skeptical glances with one another. This was not a very convincing answer at all.

The Hidden Official jumped onto the armrest of the chair so that she could look down at the map from an even higher vantage point, then murmured to herself, ”There are a few too many people who are about to die, but there are quite a few who are going to live as well, so what does it matter? In a hundred years from now, who’s going to remember what Tao Wen and Chen Ping’an have done?

“Everything they’re doing is completely futile, yet they’re going about it as if it’s the most important thing in the world. I genuinely don’t understand what these people are thinking. This is what happens when you read too many books. Man, if only I could get a sip of wine. Zhu An, hurry up and start drinking. That way, I’ll at least be able to smell some wine.”

On this day, Zuo You found himself in a very awkward situation.

When it came to Cui Dongshan, he could simply lash out if he didn’t like the look of him.

Similarly, he could adopt a very simple and direct approach when dealing with Chen Ping’an.

However, the two people standing before him were his junior nephew and junior niece!

In addition, there was also Guo Zhujiu, who maybe technically counted as half a junior niece of his?

This time, Pei Qian was planning to speak up first. Last time, she had been complacent and lost to Cao Qinglang, but she was definitely going to even the score this time.

Hence, she immediately prepared to speak as soon as Chen Ping’an and Zuo You finished exchanging pleasantries, but for all of her extensive calculations, she failed to account for Guo Zhujiu.

For some reason, the seniors of her clan were allowing her to run free, and she had been constantly hanging around the Ning Manor of late. Not only was she interrupting Ning Yao’s seclusion, she was also displaying no respect to her senior sister.

Just because I don’t acknowledge you as my junior sister doesn’t mean you can disregard me as your senior sister! How about I knock your annoying little head in to teach you a lesson? No, I must be calm and measured. Master always tells me that one should only resort to fists and swords once principles have been preached upon deaf ears.

On this day, Guo Zhujiu beat Pei Qian to the punch, asking, ”Future Senior Uncle, I heard you singlehandedly surrounded Yue Qing and a bunch of other sword immortals! Everyone’s super impressed, but it was actually no big deal for you, right? In the past, you surrounded so many great demons on your end, and you chopped them up like cabbage, so you must be used to it. I’m sure of it! Just admit it, Future Senior Uncle! Don’t try to deny it!”

”I can admit that,” Zuo You replied with a smile.

”If I were a demon from the Savage World, I would be praying all day, every day that your swordsmanship doesn’t improve any further beyond this point,” Guo Zhujiu said with a serious expression.

Pei Qian was so frustrated that she was scratching her own head.

This is the most insincere flattery I’ve ever heard! Don’t believe her, Senior Uncle!

Zuo You spoke to both Pei Qian and Cao Qinglang with an amicable smile, perfectly playing the part of the benevolent senior. He praised Pei Qian’s Deranged Demon Sword Techniques and told her to keep it up, He also told her that she could learn the sword intent passed down to her by Zhou Cheng, and that he would be personally instructing her in swordsmanship in the future.

He then told Cao Qinglang to keep up with his studies as it was a fundamental doctrine of the Scholarly Sage’s branch to focus on both study and cultivation. At the same time, he also indirectly threw some shade at Chen Ping’an, telling Cao Qinglang that it was nowhere near enough for him to follow only Chen Ping’an’s teachings.

It was important for all followers of Confucianism to strive to be better than their teachers. Otherwise, if the students regressed generation after generation, then they would only be putting their predecessors to shame, and that was unacceptable in the Scholarly Sage’s branch.

Chen Ping’an was both pleased to see such a benevolent side to Zuo You, but also a little disgruntled.

How come he’s never so gentle and easygoing with me? Is this like how some people are always strict with their children, but dote on their grandchildren?

The old great sword immortal’s thatched cottage wasn’t far away, so after visiting Zuo You, Chen Ping’an took his students and disciples to visit Chen Qingdu.

Chen Qingdu emerged from his thatched cottage, then immediately told Cui Dongshan to piss off upon catching sight of him.

Cui Dongshan immediately obliged, skipping away while flapping his sleeves up and down like a goose about to take flight.

Guo Zhujiu turned to depart as well, and as a show of her sincerity, she was swinging her arms up and down even more vigorously than Cui Dongshan.

”You can stay,” Chen Qingdu said with a smile. ”I didn’t tell you to leave.”

Guo Zhujiu was very relieved, and she turned back around and returned to her original spot.

Pei Qian heaved a massive internal sigh, and she decided that she had to advise her master to be more prudent when selecting students and disciples in the future. If all of his future disciples were going to be like this brainless little girl, then Downtrodden Mountain was doomed!

Of course, as Chen Ping’an’s first-ever disciple, she was the epitome of selflessness and fairness. She had no personal gripes toward Guo Zhujiu; she was simply looking out for the best interests of Downtrodden Mountain.

However, she also couldn’t help but admire Guo Zhujiu a little. A benefit of being so stupid was that she had no fear, even in the presence of Chen Qingdu.

As for Pei Qian herself, she didn’t dare to speak unless spoken to, and she didn’t even dare to look at the old great sword immortal for too long as her eyes would hurt.

Chen Qingdu’s gaze roamed over the children before finally settling on Chen Ping’an, and he asked, ”Do you have your answer?”

”There have always been some things that the disciples of the Scholarly Sage’s branch will and won’t do,” Chen Ping’an replied.

”Alright, it’s up to you,” Chen Qingdu replied with a casual nod.

Later, Zuo You sat in the middle atop the city walls, with Chen Ping’an and Pei Qian sitting on either side of him. Guo Zhujiu was sitting on Chen Ping’an’s other side, while Cao Qinglang was sitting next to Pei Qian.

Cui Dongshan had been told to leave by the old great sword immortal earlier, but for some reason, Chen Qingdu had summoned him back again.

After discussing whatever it was that they had to discuss, Cui Dongshan stood beside Chen Qingdu as if they were equals, looking out at the distant scenery together.

”What do you think?” Chen Qingdu asked with a smile.

”I’m just afraid that it could all just be a big dream,” Cui Dongshan replied in an indifferent voice.