Roi céleste

Chapitre 6

That's right, the dead demon that Li Yiyao and I discovered was Chen Baishou. Chen Baishou was a tragic legend. He was obsessed with swords, practicing them frantically every day, rarely caring for his wife. One day, his wife could no longer bear his valuing of swords far above her own, and she jumped from a high building, her beauty fading in an instant. Standing below, Chen Baishou stared blankly at his resolute wife, her falling figure resembling a beautiful falling flower. The falling flower was like the person falling, and the person falling was also like the falling flower. Chen Baishou used this to create the astonishing Fallen Man Sword Technique, but his mind also changed drastically, falling into the demonic path. In the end, he died a silent and tragic death in the deep mountains, only to be discovered by us. The Fallen Man Sword Technique is extremely extreme and prone to causing demonic possession. I never intended to practice it; I only learned the internal energy cultivation technique of sinking the dantian and the Seven Forms of Baishou.

Then Qingjiu's voice came to his ears again: "Although this is a good technique for concealing internal energy, it should not be used too often, as it puts too much strain on the dantian."

"...Thank you for your concern, Palace Master." I only use it when you're taking my pulse, okay?

"You don't need to stop practicing martial arts because you're worried I'll discover your lineage. You're young, it's the perfect time to practice martial arts, it would be a real shame to waste it like this."

Yes, that's right. I can't practice the Sword Technique of the Righteous Ruler, but I can practice the Seven Forms of White Hair. Not only will it not reveal my lineage, but it can also mislead others. Why didn't I think of that sooner?

Wait a minute, that treacherous scoundrel Qingjiu would never kindly remind me like this for no reason; there must be a deeper meaning behind it... He wants to tell me that he knows I practice swordsmanship, and that my actions yesterday were not only useless but also exposed my skill in throwing hidden weapons!

I felt a surge of frustration; another blunder had been added to my glorious record.

Up to now, there are only two things I've kept from him: one is that I am the girl who escaped from the teahouse that day, and the other is the sect I belong to. No matter what, the second thing must not be revealed, otherwise I will either be expelled from the sect or I will give Qing Jiu a huge handle to use against me. I dare not imagine either outcome.

Feeling my predicament, I looked up and glared fiercely at Qingjiu.

The man in the lilac robe simply smiled, his expression gentle and warm. The moon-white embroidery on his robe depicted lotus flowers about to bloom, and his voice was like the clear, melodious sound of a flute spreading across a watermark.

"...I have never met a woman as intelligent as you. It is a pleasure to talk to you."

It's because I can understand the implied meaning in your speech as soon as you speak...

Damn you, you old fox, don't try to humiliate me with that condescending, victorious tone! You bastard!

My desperate attempt to conceal my resentment only made my expression more distorted, which successfully caused the ethereal Palace Master to turn his face away to hide his unrestrained laughter. My face was stiff, and I had no idea whether I should feel proud or not...

...

A few days later we stopped and stayed in a new house deep in the mountains. Heading east down the mountain was the prosperous city of Luoyang.

During our few days together, I learned the reason why the Palace Master and his three protectors left Tian Shu Palace and headed north. The young Qing Jiu succeeded the vast Tian Shu Palace, which naturally caused a stir in the martial arts world and attracted the covetousness of many. The largest gang in the Taihang Mountains, Youyun Sixteen Prefectures, directly boasted that they would wipe out Tian Shu Palace. This made them the chicken that Tian Shu Palace used to establish its prestige and warn others. So the Palace Master and his group of four headed east, not bothering to conceal their whereabouts. They killed all the small sects and minor sects they attracted. Finally, they reached Yuyang and wiped out the stronghold of Youyun Sixteen Prefectures. It sounds fantastical that four people could destroy a gang, but it was actually easy for these four old monsters. They didn't really want to wipe out the entire gang. They just rushed in and killed all the gang leaders, elders, and high-level members first. Then they killed as many other disciples as they could. The gang, having lost its backbone, naturally collapsed. The new generation of leaders of Tian Shu Palace established a great reputation, and Tian Shu Palace still occupied three-thirds of the martial arts world. It's that simple. As for the stronghold of Tian Shu Palace, it is under the watch of the four elders who were the previous generation of protectors and the protector Chi Tian, so there is not much of a problem.

So I'm just a hired thug. This job isn't easy, but it's exactly what I'm good at. It's just that the time isn't right yet. These past few days, no one has attacked, so my skills have been completely useless...

Being close to a major city, after settling down in the mountains, we began to receive a constant stream of visitors. From elderly men in their eighties to forty-year-old hags, thirty-year-old one-armed heroes, twenty-year-old masked strangers, and strangely dressed children, all sorts of people came. The visits were almost continuous, yet Qingjiu always maintained a radiant and polite demeanor, which made me deeply appreciate the style and hard work of a generation's leader, and strengthened my resolve to enjoy life as early as possible.

To avoid suspicion, and because my injuries had healed considerably and I was no longer in serious danger, I asked Hua Mei for a sword. Every day, under the watchful eye of a protector, I practiced swordsmanship in the mountain valleys. However, after reading the sword manual for the Dui Jun Sword Technique, I became less interested in any sword techniques in the world. Even the Seven Forms of White Hair, which had a certain reputation in the martial arts world, seemed extremely mediocre to me. After practicing for a few days and learning only three forms, I felt there was no challenge at all, and I became too lazy to continue practicing, falling into boredom once again.

At this moment, the promise Baiya owed me came in handy. I asked him to take me to Luoyang City for fun. With Qingjiu's approval and Huamei's supervision, I happily dragged the two great protectors into the city.

Ever since I encountered that jinx, Qingjiu, nothing good has ever happened to me. So when I entered the city, sure enough, it was obvious that trouble was brewing.

...

Note: Neem color is still a type of purple.

Seven Cups of Seven Yin Wine

Seven Yin Wine - Savor the Seven Yin Wine in a cup, watch the trees bloom for ten years. If you wish to know how many leisure days you have, let the wine in your cup reflect the clear sunset.

...

Luoyang is a wonderful place, surrounded by mountains on all sides, with three rivers flowing smoothly. It is also incredibly wealthy, and the city scenery is beautiful. The Golden Valley is warm and the palaces are green, the bronze camel is bathed in sunshine and the silk is shimmering. The willows by the bridge are like beauties swaying in the wind and drooping to the ground, and the swings outside the flowers are half exposed on the wall.

Most importantly, Luoyang has a lot of delicious food. Under my enthusiastic guidance, Baiya and Huamei also ate their way through the streets. The most famous Luoyang Water Banquet dishes included lotus root soup with sliced meat and peony swallow's nest. There were also street vendors selling grilled gluten and fried rice cakes, as well as delicious tofu soup, donkey meat soup, and meatball soup. In the end, the three of us ate so much that we were too heavy to walk, so we decided to go to a teahouse to rest. Yes, a teahouse. History has once again proven that teahouses are sinful places.

Luoyang is a large city with a dense population, and its teahouses are frequented by all sorts of people. I glanced around and found quite a few people who knew martial arts. Of course, they only knew how; encountering the two old monsters beside me would require a stroke of luck.

After we sat down, we tried to digest our food while listening to the storyteller's spittle flying everywhere. Before long, we felt like we were being watched by the people at the next table.

"Look at those three. The older one has a sinister aura; she's clearly a femme fatale. The other two are just kids..."

"Could it be that this demoness practices some evil art of capturing young boys and girls to replenish her yang energy?"

"Hmph, if that's really the case, daring to appear in front of the people of Qinghong Manor in broad daylight is simply courting death."

I coughed to hide the twitching smile on my face, and the same coughing sound came from beside me. I turned my head to look at Baiya, and we both revealed a tacit, malicious smile at the same time. Then I looked at Huamei, and she nodded with a cold smile on her lips to indicate that she was cooperating with us.

I immediately looked at the people at the next table with a look of panic and pleading for help. This was the kind of fun we, who were bored and wanted to have a good laugh, had been waiting for.

At the next table sat a man and a woman, both with swords at their waists and wooden hairpins carved with flying geese in their hair. They were indeed from Qinghong Manor. Qinghong Manor, indeed, had no future. Judging from their clothes, they were inner disciples in blue robes. Their aura indicated that their martial arts were average; they must have just entered the inner sect, a time when they needed to accumulate significant merit.

Seeing the pleading looks in Baiya's and my eyes, the male disciple snorted and walked towards us with the female disciple, swords in hand.

"Witch, did you forcibly abduct these young boys and girls to practice your evil arts?" The female disciple's tone was fierce, clearly showing some jealousy of Hua Mei's beauty.

"So what if it is, so what if it isn't?" Hua Mei was adept at using the clichés of a martial arts villain.

"In broad daylight, how can you, a vixen, act so recklessly? Come with me to Qinghong Manor to be judged!" The male disciple grabbed Hua Mei's wrist directly.

Hua Mei swiftly dodged away, her face turning sinister as she said, "Who do you think you are, daring to touch me?"

He actually called himself "this Empress," it cracked me up...

The other people in the teahouse noticed the commotion. Some left out of fear, while most stayed to watch the excitement.

The male disciple glanced around at the onlookers, his face flushed, and roared, "Witch, you'll harm innocent people here. If you've got the guts, go to the backyard and fight me. I guarantee you'll be convinced and come back to the manor with me to be punished!"

"I'm afraid you'll lose so badly that you won't be able to accept it and will hang yourselves. If that happens, Qinghong Manor can't hold me responsible," Hua Mei said with a cold smile as she walked towards the backyard.

The two disciples, their faces turning a deep purplish-red, turned to us and said fiercely, "You two, come with us too!" Baiya and I then leisurely followed them to the backyard, where we found a relatively safe corner where we wouldn't be easily affected and squatted down.

All the windows on the back side of the yard were open, and heads excitedly squeezed out.

The two disciples were quite lacking in manners, drawing their swords and attacking without a word. Hua Mei deliberately pretended to be outmatched and barely dodged, while simultaneously untying the soft whip from her waist to fight back.

The Light Swallow Sword Technique might be decent, but in my eyes, it's just that these two disciples' martial arts are so terrible, simply appalling. Well, I'm now filled with pride in the moves I've learned as the Sovereign Sword Technique...

This isn't me being narcissistic, but the Duijun Sword Technique, along with the Seven Stars and Eight Forms of Tian Shu Palace and the Seventeen Heavenly Dragon Blades of Youlong Heaven Palace, is considered one of the three great martial arts techniques in the world, and is widely recognized as the number one sword manual. The Duijun Sword Technique, meaning it's a sword technique used only against gentlemen, emphasizes cultivating sword intent. Each move has its own artistic conception; once an opponent is caught in it, they are no longer fighting against an individual, but against the entire universe! Its powerful variations also make it difficult to learn. Traditionally, only the sect leader and their successor can learn it, because only the sect leader's Duijun Sword can unleash its full power. Using ordinary iron to wield this sword technique might cause it to break under the immense force. With each generation of disciples, the current sect leader must create a new move to incorporate into the Duijun Sword Technique, ensuring it remains the number one sword technique and is always up-to-date. Currently, the Duijun Sword Technique has eight moves.

As for why I know the sword manual of the Lord's Sword Technique, it's definitely not because I passed that horrific test of successor. Besides, those test participants must be at least eighteen to participate. So it was entirely because the rule-breaking old man Yu secretly taught me. He's already tacitly accepted me as his successor, saying that since I'd have to learn sooner or later, I might as well start now. He never expected me to even get started, but I learned the first move in a year and a half, which further solidified his determination to make me his successor. Actually, he probably didn't think I'd learn the second and third moves in two years; he was just admonishing me to keep working hard and not relax. So I need to learn the third move even more, so I can go back and see his old face full of disbelief and admiration, like an old tree blossoming in spring—though my choice of words is a bit off…

While lost in thought, Hua Mei gradually lost her footing. Of course, this was on her own initiative. She even exaggeratedly showed a pale face and said in a trembling voice, "Qing Hong Manor thinks it's a big sect in the martial arts world, so it bullies people from small sects like this?"

The male disciple's expression changed, and he roared angrily, "You witch, you sure know how to smear someone—"

I raised an eyebrow, about to offer him two copper coins, when a lazy chuckle came from above.

"Hey, what fun thing is happening here again?"

...

The sound wasn't loud, but it inexplicably attracted everyone's attention.

Bai Ya and I were both startled. Hua Mei and the two disciples also looked up in surprise. Putting aside the two good-for-nothings, none of the three of us noticed that someone was coming.

Turning around, on the deep red roof tiles of the teahouse, a slender figure stood against the sun, a sword at his waist, dressed in white as snow, like a snow-capped peak bathed in the glow of the sunset, or a banished immortal emerging from the clouds beyond the heavens. The person looked extremely young, standing like a crane, yet possessing the power of a dragon in flight; his eyes, like stars, were slightly narrowed, lazily surveying us.

The Qinghong disciple hesitated for a moment, then shouted somewhat hesitantly, "Who goes there? I am a disciple of Qinghong!"

"Tch," the person on the high eaves scoffed, seemingly bored. "The useless trash from Qinghong Manor again."

At this moment, he turned his head slightly, his face lightly covered with the brilliant sunset glow, and there seemed to be something faintly visible at the corner of his left eye.

At the corner of my left eye… I became puzzled. Although I couldn’t see the face clearly because of the backlight, an unexpected sense of familiarity welled up in my heart. I immediately adjusted my inner energy and looked at it with a little more focus. It seemed to be a small pattern…

Before they could even get a good look at him, the person, who was extremely perceptive, stopped and grunted in response, then suddenly scanned them.

Feeling that sharp gaze, I, who was afraid of trouble but always sought it out, immediately lowered my head and pretended to be timid.

"—What did you say?" The two Qinghong disciples instantly forgot about Huamei's presence, angrily gripping their swords to meet the mysterious youth. "What kind of madman dares to insult our sect—"

The boy merely smiled dismissively, his figure shifting on the roof beam. In the blink of an eye, he landed on the ground in front of the two disciples. Even though he made no move, the swords in their hands snapped off at the hilt. With a thud as the swords hit the ground, the two disciples snapped out of their daze and looked at the boy with fluttering robes in horror.

Okay, I see it clearly now. It's actually very simple. It's just drawing the sword once and then sheathing it again. It's just that the sword was drawn extremely fast, the strike was extremely accurate, and the force was enormous. Just now, it swayed like the waters of Tamazuma. It must be a good sword. It seems that I only showed off a little bit.

And now we've encountered another young genius? At his age, his speed and strength alone are enough to make him a god. Is the world about to descend into chaos, with heroes rising everywhere, so even with a genius, it's still a fight-or-fight situation? This is truly frustrating…

I've met this kind of person before, how could I not remember them? Besides, they're clearly different from me; they're not the kind of person who's forced to always hide their true feelings. So, what I just saw must have been my imagination.

When I looked again, I found that the boy was also looking at me with great interest. His narrow eyes were slightly squinted, his long eyelashes were like the feathers of a heron after it had been groomed, and the hidden light in his pupils was like the sparse stars reflected in the water.

A dragon, meticulously drawn with an extremely fine gold brush, is painted slightly below his left eye. It is both elegant and domineering, as if it is about to soar into the sky and roar, which also reflects the boy's arrogant and domineering demeanor.

Upon closer inspection, the hem of the boy's snow-white satin robe was covered with patterns of soaring golden dragons.

The arrogant female disciple was completely stunned by his heavenly beauty, staring blankly without any regard for her image. The male disciple was still somewhat sober, but his previous arrogance had completely vanished due to his severe shock; he had lost all semblance of his chivalrous demeanor. Bai Ya and Hua Mei also looked at the young man thoughtfully.

The male disciple of Qinghong Manor first looked at the hem of the boy's clothes, then at the golden dragon at the corner of his eye, and finally succumbed to a semi-mad state, letting out a trembling, dry howl:

"You, you are... Yin Liuchuan, the young master of Youlong Heavenly Palace!"

The young palace master didn't bother to respond. After a moment's thought, he struck again with lightning speed, just like before. In a flash of light, the hair on the heads of two disciples from Qinghong Manor was cut off.

Looking at the loess basins emerging from the dense black forest above my two disciples' heads, I marveled at the boy's cleverness and, after a moment of restraint, managed to burst out laughing...

"According to the rules of those old fogies, I will not kill you. This is the punishment for your tyranny. Get out of here."

Watching the two loess basins leave in a disheveled and indignant manner, I felt extremely reluctant to part with them, while secretly laughing to myself.

Before he could finish laughing, a boy's uniquely nonchalant and lazy voice came from in front of him:

"Hey, haven't we... met before?"

...

The familiar sentence structure instantly extinguished my smile, and my face turned ashen.

No way, here we go again. Is it a convention for all the monsters in the world to use this trick when they open their mouths...? Do I feel like I recognize this person because I've developed a sensitivity to evil spirits...? But the other person also feels like they've seen me before, so it can't be a coincidence, right?

I looked up again and noticed a beauty mark under the boy's left eye. That beauty mark was the eye of the dragon drawn with the golden brush, making the small dragon seem full of spirit, as if it was about to take flight at any moment. It was just like the finishing touch on a dragon painting.

Looking at the beauty mark under his eye, then at the boy's naturally handsome features, and then at his arrogant and irritating way of speaking, my mind went blank for a moment, and I understood everything.

Eight Cups of Mulberry Wine

Sangluo Wine - I know not the taste of sangluo wine, who will I share it with this year? Its color is more delicate than cool brew, its aroma as sweet as dew, eternally fresh. I'll carry a dou (a unit of volume) for ten thousand coins, and send it far away to my old friend in the Xiang River region.

...

My acquaintance with Yin Liuchuan was, to be precise, a matter of chance rather than fate; learned people generally call it a karmic entanglement.

This understanding, of course, came to me later. At the time, I was just a six-year-old child who had already passed through the depressing years of thinking about revenge day and night. Under the influence of Li Yiyao, this peculiar flower, I regained much of my childlike innocence and once again enjoyed the privilege of being young and ignorant.

To talk about revenge, I have to tell you about my background first.

My background is the most unique and also the most clichéd in the martial arts world: an orphan. But behind every ten thousand orphans are ten thousand different stories, so I still have to mention it.

It's said that my father was a renowned chivalrous knight-errant of his time, carefree and unrestrained, indifferent to fame and fortune. However, after I was born, our family's poverty became glaringly obvious. My father humbled himself, taking on murder jobs to make ends meet. Later, he took on a big job, slaughtering an entire family, but ultimately hesitated and let a twelve-year-old child go. From then on, my father became depressed and ill due to the indiscriminate killing, almost becoming crippled. Five years later, the child he had let go led a band of bandits into our yard and slaughtered our family. I survived because my mother hid me in a wine vat, but my parents and servants all perished. Later, the child, having avenged his father, committed suicide with a sword to repay his father's life-saving grace. In short, my family background was a complete tragedy of annihilation.