Unsheathed

During a slight reprieve in the intense battle, a few young sword cultivators from the outside world retreated from the southern end of the city wall to the northern end. At the same time, a group of well-rested, energetic local sword cultivators silently took their places. As they crossed paths, most of the sword cultivators in the latter group now had slight smiles on their faces.

Yu Juanfu sat atop the northern city wall and chomped down on her last piece of flatbread. She was brimming with fist intent, yet she was unable to unleash punches from the beginning to the end.

For the first time in her life, Yu Juanfu, who was only able to spectate the battle after ascending the city wall, felt an extremely strong desire to advance her martial arts cultivation base. The seventh tier, the Vajra Body Tier, was ultimately a big step away from the eighth tier, the Far Roaming Tier. Only after advancing to the Far Roaming Tier could a martial artist soar through the skies like a Qi refiner, allowing them to unleash punches to their heart’s content.

Zhu Mei’s face was as pale as a sheet, and there was a sense of lingering apprehension in her heart as she silently wiped the sweat from her forehead.

She had faced several perilous situations after launching attacks with her bonded flying sword, and she had either been protected by Sword Immortal Ku Xia or been saved by Jin Zhenmeng. In fact, she had even been helped once by Lin Junbi, who was still just a Sea Observation Tier sword cultivator.

If it hadn’t been for Lin Junbi seeing through the disguise of a sacrificial demon, purposely enticing the demon to use its trump card and eventually withdrawing his flying sword at the last split-second, allowing Jin Zhenmeng to seize the opportunity to kill the demon, Zhu Mei’s bonded flying sword would have definitely suffered damage in that exchange.

At that time, she would have been forced to retreat from the city wall even if she were fortunate enough to avoid severe damage to her Great Dao. She would have been forced to obediently nurse her wounds at the Sun Clan and thereafter have no further participation in this battle against the demons.

Lin Junbi was describing his observations and learnings in the previous battles to Jin Zhenmeng.

This was Lin Junbi’s first time chatting privately with Jin Zhenmeng about these matters, and he talked about the tradeoffs, blemishes, downfalls, and the many exquisite areas of the sword strikes used in the battles.

There was a warm smile on Jin Zhenmeng’s face, and it was clear that he had grown friendlier with Lin Junbi thanks to this conversation, despite not saying very much.

This was also Jin Zhenmeng’s first time feeling like Lin Junbi — a prodigious youth who was seemingly flawless — had a slightly more human touch to him.

Lin Junbi retrieved a small and exquisite porcelain bottle crafted by the construction office of the Shaoyuan Empire, pouring out three alchemical pills of different colors. He kept the goose-yellow pill for himself and handed the raven-blue pill and the spring-green pill to Jin Zhenmeng and Zhu Mei, respectively.

Jin Zhenmeng and Zhu Mei both responded the same way, hesitating for a moment before choosing to accept the alchemical pills. The three of them each ingested an alchemical pill.

Lin Junbi focused his attention and calmed his breathing, slowly digesting the alchemical pill and letting the abundant spiritual energy rush into his critical acupoints.

However, Lin Junbi also used a bit of his mind to repeatedly analyze the conclusion of that trial of self-reflection.

His Dao Heart would become fuller and more complete with each completed analysis.

The young boy in white, who had introduced himself as Cui Dongshan, had asked Lin Junbi a question when picking up the Go stones and returning them to their containers back then. He had asked Lin Junbi whether he dared to stay at the Sword Qi Great Wall to kill demons.

Lin Junbi had replied yes, but continued that the risks far outweighed the benefits, so it seemingly wasn’t worth staying behind to kill demons.

At that time, the conversation had flowed as such.

”This isn’t a suggestion; it’s a command. You’re too stupid, so I have no option but to say a bit more, lest my good intentions be mangled and misconstrued as ill intentions by you. This should be a great opportunity for you, so I don’t want it to become a reason for you to blame and criticize me in the future. Not only that, but you’ll even feel aggrieved when I beat you to death at that time.”

Cui Dongshan pinched a Go stone with two fingers, waving it around and continuing, ”Firstly, it’s not important at all how many great demons you kill if you choose to stay. Of course, it would be better if you managed to kill a few more demons and win the approval of one or two sword immortals.”

Cui Dongshan casually tossed the Go stone into its container, after which he picked up another Go stone and said, ”Secondly, Ku Xia will accompany you and the others, so you won’t die as long as you act within your limits. Ku Xia is even more stupid than you, but he’s ultimately one of the rare few good people in the mountains. So, the more you act like a good person, and the more resolutely you unleash sword strikes to kill a greater number of demons, the more Ku Xia will recognize and approve of you.

”Ku Xia has already resolved to fight to the death, so perhaps he might one day be willing to change the method of his death, dying for the sake of Lin Junbi instead of dying for the sake of himself. He might die for the sake of the Shaoyuan Empire’s future pillar.

”You need to be careful when that time arrives, and you can’t allow Sword Immortal Ku Xia to truly die here for your sake. You need to relentlessly pursue the avenues of Zhu Mei and Jin Zhenmeng, especially the former, to have Ku Xia abandon his thoughts of dying a courageous death and instead convince him to escort the three of you from the Sword Qi Great Wall.

”Remember, even if Sword Immortal Ku Xia insists on returning to the Sword Qi Great Wall by himself, he should at least accompany the three of you to the Southern Whirl Continent first. Only then can he turn around and make his way back. As for how to achieve this goal and what the significance of doing this is, I’m not going to tell you, and you can use your young but rusty brain to figure it out yourself.”

Cui Dongshan tossed the second Go stone into the container and continued, ”Thirdly, you need to strike a good balance when you interact with Zhu Mei and Jin Zhenmeng after leaving Stalactite Mountain and traveling back home. You shouldn’t gild the lily, and you need to avoid trying to win their hearts. In fact, why don’t I teach you a strategy?

”This Lin Junbi, who interacts with them, can remain cold and aloof as always, appearing like a completely different person from when he was killing demons on the city wall before. Otherwise, all your previous efforts will go to waste. Zhu Mei and Jin Zhenmeng aren’t the same as Yan Lü and Jiang Guancheng, with the latter being pragmatic and the former being ideological. They’re complete opposites, so consider this carefully and make of it what you will.

”Fourthly, you should shut up after you return to the Middle Earth Divine Continent’s Shaoyuan Empire, where the scholarly culture is flourishing. You shouldn’t mention a single word about your experience. If you can’t control your mouth, then piss off to seclusion and turn away all guests. Of course, you should naturally have a secret meeting with your master before you shut your mouth, and you can feel free to tell him the truth. Apart from your interactions with me, there’s no need to conceal anything from your master, no matter how big or small. Don’t treat your master like a fool.

”The imperial preceptor will understand your ambitions, and not only will he not feel disgusted, but he’ll even feel pleased about you being a like-minded person. He’ll naturally protect you in secret, and he’ll do for you, his prized disciple, what masters should do for their disciples. He won’t resort to crude methods such as personally stepping forward to boost your fame and reputation; in fact, he might even do the opposite to a certain degree.

”In any case, Yan Lü, who’s even more stupid than you, has already become your Go piece, and he’ll say and do what’s expected of him after he returns home. However, the imperial preceptor will suppress the flow of information within the Shaoyuan Empire, preventing people from lavishing praise on you for your feats at the Sword Qi Great Wall.

”Afterward, you can wait for the Confucian schools and academies to speak for you. In the meantime, the more silent you remain and the more muted the Shaoyuan Empire is, the more praise will find its way over from all directions. You can’t block them or keep them out even if you want to.

”Not only will people in the Shaoyuan Empire know about Lin Junbi, but all of the rulers, officials, cultivators, and martial artists in the surrounding kingdoms and vassal states will know about Lin Junbi as well. Everyone will hear about his journey to the Sword Qi Great Wall, and how he dared to stand firm and draw his sword against the demons, leaving them dead below the city wall.”

Cui Dongshan held a Go stone in his fingers and asked with a smile, ”What was the finest detail included in this fourth point? Think carefully before you answer, and don’t disappoint me.”

”Having my master think that my interactions with other people and matters are still relatively naive,” Lin Junbi replied. ”At the same time, this will allow Master to do some things that his disciple can’t do no matter what, and Master won’t feel any discomfort while doing these things.”

Cui Dongshan tossed the Go stone into its container and said, ”Fortunately, you aren’t stupid beyond saving. Just you wait. When the battle at the Sword Qi Great Wall becomes more intense and deadly in the future, and when the Majestic World receives a whack and becomes stupefied but also slightly more alert, your actions at the Sword Qi Great Wall will only become more and more impressive.”

Cui Dongshan picked up another Go stone and said with a snicker, ”Even the sages, noble scholars, and virtuous scholars belonging to different Confucian lineages from your master will regard you with newfound respect. The imperial preceptor will increasingly view you as a closing disciple who has the Great Dao within reach, but the Confucian schools and academies might not continue to regard you as the disciple of an empire’s imperial preceptor. You can experience and ponder the interesting nature of this by yourself. It will feel like drinking fine wine.”

Cui Dongshan waved the Go stone between his fingers and continued, ”However, remember not to get carried away, or else all of today’s praises might become tomorrow’s criticisms. Moreover, those giving praises and leveling criticisms are often the same group of people. This is another interesting point, and after you understand it, it’s another intoxicating pot of fine wine.”

Cui Dongshan once again tossed away the Go stone between his fingers, causing it to loudly crash into its Go container with a crisp crack. He then shook his sleeves and said, ”You can use Yan Lü more in the future, but Zhu Mei is different, and you must receive her recognition and approval first. Especially when it comes to the latter, you’ll receive an unexpected surprise if you manage to forge a good relationship with her.”

”Is it the clan that Zhu Mei belongs to?” Lin Junbi asked in a quiet voice.

Cui Dongshan shook his head and replied, ”Not that significant. Your brain is truly mush, so how are you going to play Go? You’re only looking one or two steps ahead, but you still want to win?”

”Please enlighten me, Mr. Cui,” Lin Junbi said in a sincere voice.

”If Zhu Mei says something, then it’s essentially the same as Yu Juanfu seeing it with her own eyes,” Cui Dongshan said. ”The two of them have an extremely close and pure relationship, and they’re almost always together. What matters won’t they discuss with each other? Yu Juanfu approves of Zhu Mei’s character, so if Zhu Mei approves of you, she’ll naturally put in a few legitimately good words for you. And because of Zhu Mei’s purity and honesty, Yu Juanfu will naturally believe her words.

”You showed a pathetic display of plotting and scheming at the Sword Qi Great Wall, but not only will that not become a blemish on the Shaoyuan Empire’s Lin Junbi in Yu Juanfu’s eyes, but it might even elevate her opinion of you. Do you understand what I’m getting at?”

”I’m afraid of not thinking deeply enough and misunderstanding, so please explain in more detail, Mr. Cui,” Lin Junbi replied in a quiet voice.

Cui Dongshan smiled and explained, ”People who have no flaws are the least personable, but if someone disapproves of you at first and then approves of you later, this type of approval will be even firmer and more unwavering than any type of approval given from the outset. You don’t even understand this?

”You don’t know how to play Go, and you don’t know how to read the human mind either. I’m already starting to feel some regret about choosing to engage in this long-term transaction with you. Why do I feel like I’m going to lose money? Lin Junbi, I didn’t feel any anxiety during all of those Go games with you, but why am I suddenly filled with worry after deciding to do business with you? Whatever shall I do?”

Lin Junbi wanted to say something, but he couldn’t help but hesitate.

Cui Dongshan narrowed his eyes and said, ”You know how to ask questions, but not how to think for yourself? Do you know that my patience is limited, and that I’ll kill you if I need to? Do you know why? An incorrect answer will mean death.”

Beads of sweat formed on Lin Junbi’s forehead as he replied, ”I can die of stupidity by myself, but I can’t affect your judgment and have you find a stupid person to do business with, Mr. Cui.”

Cui Dongshan smiled faintly and said, ”Not bad, it looks like you can still be taught.”

Cui Dongshan placed his palm on the Go stones inside one of the Go containers, lightly rubbing them as he casually continued, ”As a pure martial artist who’s also from the Middle Earth Divine Continent, Yu Juanfu won’t detest a sword cultivator who’s smart and is also willing to fight to the death. How do you think the Yu Clan, and perhaps even Old Bastard Zhou Shenzhi, will regard a young sword cultivator whom Yu Juanfu doesn’t detest? Is this a trivial and insignificant matter?

”Have the old bastards in the Yu Clan and Zhou Shenzhi not seen a lot of so-called smart people, like the original Lin Junbi, in their lives? That old bastard in the Yu Clan orchestrated the fall of one empire and the rise of another with a single hand, so what kind of smart person hasn’t he seen before?

”He’s accustomed to seeing the ebbs and flows of worldly matters after living for several thousand years, but what he hasn’t seen much of are those energetic young people who are both smart and stupid at the same time. These young people have complete disregard for heaven and earth, yet they’re filled with a sense of naivety, daring to risk their reputation, riches, and lives for the sake of some particular major matters.”

Cui Dongshan lightly raised his hand one inch above the Go container, gently twisting his wrist as he said with a smile, ”These are the magnificent and changing sceneries in the depths of people’s minds. You’re simply unable to see it clearly. To possess powerful observation skills and a keen eye for detail? Cultivators don’t take advantage of this and turn a blind eye to all kinds of things, so what nonsensical Dao Heart are they cultivating?

”You, Lin Junbi, are a cultivator from the mountains who’s destined to make a huge impact in the imperial court, so how will you understand and discriminate between people if you fail to understand the human heart? How will you control and make use of people? How can you feel confident while controlling and making use of people?”

Lin Junbi was wholeheartedly convinced as he said solemnly, ”I, Lin Junbi, have learned a lot from Mr. Cui’s lofty teachings.”

Cui Dongshan looked up and asked, ”Lofty? You’re using such a basic and crude word to describe me?”

Lin Junbi shook his head and replied, ”Both lofty and radiant, rivaled by only the sun and the moon! I’m willing to spend my entire life to pursue such a state, and this most certainly isn’t the same notion of loftiness spoken by the common people.”

Cui Dongshan laughed loudly and remarked, ”Your flattery skills are a perfect fit for the mountains where I’m from. Very well, very well indeed. If the opportunity arises in the future, I might truly take you as my disciple, and when that happens, you can visit the ancestral hall to offer incense and kowtow to the portraits.”

In reality, there was already speculation in Lin Junbi’s mind, but it was so preposterous that he didn’t dare to believe it.

Cui Dongshan retracted his smile and glanced down at the Go board. He then ran his hand across the board and swept all of the Go stones into the container, after which he retrieved a solitary black stone and placed it on the board. He then retrieved several white stones and formed a large circle around the black stone.

”Since I’m raising you like half a disciple, I’m going to show some true skills and use this black stone to represent Yan Lü,” Cui Dongshan said. ”You need to convince this black stone that it has a lot of freedom and is unrestrained amid heaven and earth, with its life filled with possibilities and hope. In reality, however, all of its thoughts are controlled by you. His life, death, gains, and losses are all controlled by your plots and calculations.”

Lin Junbi felt like this was a simple principle that was fairly easy to understand.

Cui Dongshan then placed an even larger circle of black stones around the white stones, asking, ”This represents the minds of Old Bastard Zhou and Old Man Yu. How should you solve this dilemma?”

Lin Junbi mulled over this for a long time, raising his arm to wipe the sweat off his forehead before shaking his head and replying. ”There’s no solution. In fact, I shouldn’t even try to think about solving this dilemma.”

Cui Dongshan nodded and said, ”Not bad. You’re half correct.”

He picked up a white stone and placed it beyond the circle of black stones on the Go board, saying, ”The state of the Go board is very difficult to change in the short-term, and life is ultimately not the same as a Go game, with each player moving one after another. However, don’t forget about the unrestrained nature of the human heart. You can hide a thought in the distance and carefully observe the larger Go board of heaven and earth with your eyes wide open. Zhou Shenzhi is nothing in comparison. This is a process of cultivating the heart.”

Lin Junbi lowered his head and gazed intently at the Go board, which wasn’t a Go guide, and fell deep into thought.

”Deer call to each other, eating the wild cudweed. I have fine wine, so strum the zithers and blow the reed-organs. ’Tis a shame, though, that no fine guests are present.”[1] Cui Dongshan retracted his gaze from the vast lands and turned it to the sky, saying with a faint smile, ”A guest in the mountains, a lord amid the clouds; Watching birds fly by, I down a cup of wine.”

Sitting atop the city wall, Lin Junbi also gazed up at the sky like the young boy in white.

The person in the poem was none other than Cui Chan, whose game of Go had inspired the composition of the Iridescent Cloud Go Manual.

In fact, his Go skills were even better now than before.

Cui Dongshan put away the Go board and Go container, and after standing up, he said one last thing to Lin Junbi, remarking, ”I’m teaching you these things to tell you that being calculating and scheming isn’t interesting at all. It’s a dead end with no future.”

1. This is a slightly modified line based on a line from the Classic of Poetry, the oldest existing collection of Chinese poetry, comprising 305 works dating from the 11th to 7th centuries BC. ☜