Chapter 149: A Sword Flying from Afar, Sword Qi Like a Rainbow

Chapter 149: A Sword Arrives from Beyond, Sword Qi Like a Rainbow

That early morning, after practicing his ancient fist techniques a few times, He Chang'an began to practice the sword in the clearing before the small wooden cabin.

However, there was no sword in his hand.

Only sword intent resided in his heart.

As he regulated his breath and cycled his internal energy through the major and minor heavenly circuits, he clenched his empty hands into fists, imagining a peerless, exquisite sword resting right in his grasp.

Every stance and posture appeared clumsy and laughable.

Just at that moment, from the distant skies, a sword pierced through the void and arrived.

He Chang'an stood frozen, narrowing his eyes as he looked up to see a silver-white streak of light hurtling swiftly toward him.

So rapid was this sword-shaped silver radiance that it dragged behind it a trail of light dozens of feet long.

A young girl in green robes, brimming with spirited heroism, was riding a sword through the air. Viewed from afar, she resembled a fairy walking upon the ripples, drifting gracefully closer.

He Chang'an was utterly dumbfounded.

He had never witnessed anyone riding a sword in flight, nor had he ever beheld a maiden so spirited yet possessing beauty of the absolute highest order. For a fleeting moment, he wondered if his soul had wandered into a realm of divine dreams.

In less than two breaths, that streak of white light shot right up to them, executed a breathtaking sideways drift before the cliff to dissipate its momentum, and hovered steadily twenty or thirty feet away.

Indeed, it was a delicate little flying sword, less than a foot long and barely an inch wide, inscribed with strange and profound runes that radiated ripples of spiritual energy.

The green-robed maiden standing atop the flying sword was around twelve or thirteen years of age. Her skin was like coagulated frost, her brows clear and eyes bright. Her elongated eyes shone with a brilliant, dark, and fathomless light, resembling two pools of clear spring water.

Beautiful, yet radiating a heroic posture.

She looked He Chang'an up and down, and seeing the bamboo sword tied around his waist, a peculiar expression crossed her face. Rolling her eyes with a smile, she asked, "Where does the traveler come from, and whither is he bound?"

He Chang'an was slightly startled, realizing his staring was somewhat impolite. He closed his agape mouth, cupped his fists, and smiled, "Greetings, young lady."

The maiden was also taken aback, then couldn't help but let out a snort of laughter. "You are an unreasonable fellow, answering a question with a question."

As she spoke, she broke into laughter first.

"Right, what's your name? Are you from Bamboo Sword Mountain? Are you very powerful? I met an old coot from Bamboo Sword Mountain once—he was utterly tyrannical and terribly ugly, and he kept pestering me to teach me swordsmanship, but I couldn't be bothered to care about him."

The young girl chattered away animatedly for a good while. Seeing He Chang'an standing there with a bewildered expression, tongue-tied and unable to utter a single word, she suddenly found it uninteresting.

With a light tap of her foot, she prepared to drive her sword away.

He Chang'an snapped back to his senses and hastily cried out, "My name is He Chang'an!"

Seeing that the maiden was about to leave, anxiety welled up in his heart, and he quickly added, "That... old coot from Bamboo Sword Mountain, did he claim to be a sword cultivator?"

This was a tactic born of He Chang'an's worldly experience; he knew that if you wanted to persuade someone to linger, the best method was to toss out a question.

Naturally, that question had to be something the other party was interested in and willing to answer; otherwise, it would have no effect.

Sure enough, upon hearing He Chang'an's inquiry, the green-robed maiden halted her departure, turned her profile, and smiled. "Yes, he calls himself a sword cultivator. But he looks far too hideous, so I figured he was just a liar."

As she spoke, the maiden laughed again.

"Hey, do you know him? Do you know where he is now? He still owes me several hundred spiritual stones."

"Oh right, next time you see him, ask him if he feels any shame swindling spiritual stones from a little girl. Haha."

He Chang'an smiled and suddenly asked, "I've stewed a pot of soup. It should be ready about now. Care to come down and have a bowl?"

The maiden froze, burst into laughter, and pointed a plump index finger at He Chang'an. "Look at that, I told you people from Bamboo Sword Mountain are utterly shameless. You want to trick me into talking to you more, so you're trying to lure me with delicious food?"

"Honestly, you're just as bad as that old coot. Are you his disciple?"

He Chang'an shook his head with a bitter smile. "I'm only a friend of his. He found me too dim-witted and refused to take me as a disciple, while I found his appearance thoroughly ordinary yet overwhelmingly arrogant, so I refused to bow to him as a master either."

The maiden burst into hearty laughter, thoroughly amused.

She steered her flying sword toward the clearing before the wooden cabin, leaped down lightly, and in the blink of an eye, the small silver-white flying sword vanished without a trace, God knows where she had stowed it.

He Chang'an watched with deep envy, his attitude growing even warmer as he turned around and shouted, "Lang Fei, go into the forest and pluck a handful of scallions! The meat is tender now."

The young demon youth acknowledged the order and quickly darted into the woods.

The maiden glanced at Lang Fei's retreating back, a look of envy crossing her face as she lowered her voice and asked with a mischievous smile, "Confess honestly, where did you kidnap that descendant of the Heavenly Wolf?"

He Chang'an admiringly raised his thumb in praise and smiled, "Someone shoved him onto me."

After that, he said no more.

The existence of that demon town was extremely bizarre and possessed certain unbelievable traits. He still hadn't quite figured it out himself, so he preferred not to dwell on it too much in front of outsiders.

Nor did the maiden press further.

She followed behind He Chang'an to the large iron pot, sniffed deeply a few times, and let out a long breath. "I get to secretly eat meat again."

Hearing this, He Chang'an found it somewhat strange and turned his profile to look at the maiden, only to be glared right back at her. "What are you looking at? It's just sneaking a taste of game. If you dare breathe a word of this, I'll break your dog legs!"

With that, she burst out laughing.

***

He Chang'an looked at the maiden's spirited, heroic demeanor and silently sighed to himself, *How truly beautiful.*

Had she not been so young, barely eleven or twelve with remaining baby fat upon her cheeks, He Chang'an would have suspected he was falling in love at first sight...

The maiden walked swiftly up to the large pot, wearing a covetous expression as she drooled and stomped her feet repeatedly. "That little wolf cub is dragging his feet just to pluck some scallions. I might as well break his wolf legs later."

Right on cue, Lang Fei emerged from the woods gripping a handful of scallions. Hearing the maiden's words, he gave a start of terror and nearly turned to flee.

He cursed his bitter fate inwardly. Why must his life be so wretched?

First, in the town, he was bullied by those half-grown youths and beaten within an inch of his life time and time again.

Just as he finally followed He Chang'an and thought he had grown familiar enough not to suffer any more hardship, another "Sword Fairy" flew in out of nowhere, declaring she would break his wolf legs.

The young demon youth made a bitter face as he walked over hesitantly, handed the large bunch of scallions to He Chang'an, and said in a muffled voice, "Are these enough? If not, I'll go pluck some more."

Before He Chang'an could speak, the maiden snatched the scallions, lifted the pot lid, and tossed the scallions directly into the boiling stew. "Enough, enough. Scallions are just there for flavor anyway."

As she spoke, she grabbed a wooden ladle and stirred the contents of the big pot casually a few times.

"Alright, time to eat!"

The maiden sat down brazenly, flipped her hand to retrieve a storage bag, and began pulling things out endlessly.

After watching for just a few moments, He Chang'an felt his mood sour.

What the maiden was pulling from her storage bag were none other than various jars and bottles—chili salt, seasonings, sesame oil. Why did they look so terribly familiar to him?

Weren't these the exact dining utensils he had given to the sword cultivator A Fei when he was practicing swordsmanship by the Dragon Gate Waterfall? How on earth did they end up in this maiden's hands?

Moreover, judging by how solemnly she used a priceless storage bag exclusively to carry these jars and bottles, she seemed to value them a great deal...

"What? Why are you staring at me like that? Is there a problem?"

The maiden possessed exceptionally keen spiritual perception. Although He Chang'an had only glanced over casually, she instantly detected the anomaly.

"Those bottles and jars... were they given to you by that fellow who calls himself a sword cultivator?" He Chang'an smiled.

"No," the maiden replied with a smug grin. "He didn't give them to me; I won them in a bet."

"That old coot is ugly, and his character is lacking too; he always likes to bully my master. But his gambling ethics aren't bad—when he loses, he loses, and he never reneges on a debt."

The maiden chattered incessantly, while He Chang'an could only listen and respond with an honest smile.

Little did he expect that the friends of that self-proclaimed sword cultivator were quite formidable.

Since this maiden could ride a flying sword, she must be a disciple of some Daoist immortal sect. In He Chang'an's eyes, she could practically be considered akin to an earthly immortal.

"Right, He Chang'an, what are you doing here at Sword Gate? Could it be you want to comprehend the sword as well?" The maiden spoke without a filter, leaving He Chang'an momentarily speechless with her blunt question.

He truly was here to comprehend the sword, yet hearing it phrased so casually by this young girl made him feel somewhat ridiculous. "I heard that Sword Gate once produced an earthly sword immortal, and since I happened to be idle lately, I dropped by to take a look. As for comprehending the sword, what young man wouldn't want to?"

The maiden cast a disdainful glance at him and reached out to grab a large chunk of wild chicken meat. "Comprehend the sword?"

He Chang'an nodded slightly.

"You?"

"..."

Fine, this girl was simply born to argue. He Chang'an felt his cultivation of inner peace was passable, yet even so, his chest tightened momentarily, and his old face felt a bit warm.

"People from Bamboo Sword Mountain... oh wait, you're not from Bamboo Sword Mountain, then it's fine."

"The swordsmanship of Bamboo Sword Mountain takes unorthodox paths, bordering almost on demonic arts; it can hardly be called supreme swordsmanship. Don't let that old coot A Fei rot your brain."

He Chang'an nodded but said nothing.

Such disputes over the Great Dao had nothing whatsoever to do with him.

How many heroes and gallants in the martial world became inexplicably entangled in these Grand Dao rivalries? One person claims you've entered the demonic path, another declares themselves orthodox, and the number of those who inexplicably lost their lives was countless.

As a crude warrior, how could he ever dare meddle in any opinions on the matter!

He would simply listen and leave it at that.

Fortunately, the maiden only spoke a few words before dropping the subject of sword paths, diving back into fishing meat out of the pot to devour ravenously. Where was any of the poise of a "Sword-Riding Fairy" left?

At last, after the maiden had consumed two wild chickens, half a roe deer leg, and two large bowls of meat soup, she finally stopped eating.

"Little wolf cub, go fetch some clean water. I want to wash my hands."

Burping in deep satisfaction, the maiden casually ordered the young demon youth to fetch water from the nearby stream.

Once the youth had walked away, the maiden lowered her voice and asked with profound doubt, "That wolf cub has a vicious mind and is filled with resentment. Why do you still keep him by your side?"

He Chang'an smiled, speaking in a gentle tone, "Entrusted by another, I have no choice in the matter."

"Still, I think he's not bad," he turned back to look at Lang Fei's retreating figure. "If a person cannot see evil, they cannot see goodness either."

"He is another version of myself, a mirror. Through him, I can constantly perceive my own wretchedness and flaws."

"Of course, he is also a whetstone for me, allowing me to remain tranquil, peaceful, and maintain an ordinary mind."

The maiden opened her eyes wide, looking at He Chang'an with a trace of strangeness before a look of admiring approval slowly crept onto her face. Mimicking He Chang'an, she raised her thumb and silently gave a thumbs-up.

"Aren't you something!" the maiden chuckled.

"It is what it is," He Chang'an smiled. "I was born in humble circumstances; my mother passed away too early, and my old man was a border soldier for the Great Tang—a man of utmost integrity and unyielding strength, though terribly rough around the edges. I haven't read many books and know very few principles. To be honest, I didn't like my past self. Back then, I was nothing more than a vagrant, a petty hoodlum living it up in a county town called Weiyang, yet I often found myself utterly sickening. I wanted to live a different life."

Pouring his heart out in one breath, He Chang'an was himself somewhat surprised.

These hidden thoughts within his heart were rarely revealed before others—not because he feared being looked down upon, but simply because he felt it was meaningless.

Everyone possessed a life of their own; what did his life experiences have to do with anyone else? Even if he poured his heart out, it would only invite amusement.

Meaningless.

Yet before this little girl of only eleven or twelve, these thoughts hidden for so many years spilled forth naturally.

It felt as though he were sharing wine and joy with a longtime friend, casting aside all inhibitions and speaking his mind all at once, which he found rather incredible.

Perhaps it was simply because the other party was a young girl and a complete stranger.

This accidental encounter was nothing more than a tiny ripple in the vast, long memory of his cultivation journey...

What was remarkable was that the maiden listened with utmost seriousness, setting aside her usual boisterous and carefree demeanor, resembling an elder sister instead.

The demon youth brought a bucket of clean water, placed it down silently, and then slinked away with his head bowed, crouching on the ground like a dog to avoid looking at the two "lovebirds" before him.

He could sense that this "Sword Fairy" did not like him.

In fact, at a certain moment not long ago, she had even harbored a shred of murderous intent.

He had to hide his vengeful heart secretly, burying it like an earth-shattering secret so that no one would ever know.

***

As noon approached, the maiden stood up, preparing to depart.

He Chang'an stood quietly to the side without speaking, merely gazing warmly at the spirited maiden.

"Thanks for the delicious food, He Chang'an. I have to go back now." The maiden flicked her small hand, and a small silver-white flying sword appeared out of thin air. Stepping onto it, she turned back with a hearty laugh:

"What, are you already reluctant to see this young lady leave?"

He Chang'an gave a light cough and smiled. "Just a simple meal, hardly worth mentioning."

The maiden snorted, her elongated eyes sparkling with spiritual light as she wrinkled her nose in disdain. "You really do know that fellow from Bamboo Sword Mountain after all—you've learned at least ninety-eight percent of his shamelessness! Clearly reluctant to see me leave, yet you put on a front like it's nothing. Boring, utterly boring."

"I'm off!"

With a slight shift of her feet, the flying sword emitted a soft 'hum,' bursting forth with a dazzling white light as it surged forward over a dozen feet.

With a sideways drift and a spiral in mid-air, it darted into the distance like a shooting arrow.

He Chang'an stood quietly beneath a pine tree at the edge of the cliff, lingering alone for a long time without pulling back his gaze.

Suddenly, that silver-white sword light shot back from the far horizon.

He Chang'an's state of mind faltered slightly.

"Hey, He Chang'an! I just suddenly remembered—you haven't even asked for my name yet!"

"Are you looking down on me or something?"

Standing atop the flying sword like a fairy, the maiden wore an unconvinced expression. "That self-proclaimed sword cultivator gave me a good sword, so I only grudgingly told him my name."

He Chang'an shook his head with a bitter smile. "But I don't have a good sword to give you... Then tell me, what is your name?"

"Hmph, stingy!" The maiden wanted to stamp her feet on the flying sword, but finding no room to do so, she merely wrinkled her nose. "Why should I tell you?"

The flying sword beneath her feet whirled, shooting forth and vanishing into the distance once more.

From afar came the sound of silvery laughter, carrying a trace of youthful childishness, wonderfully pleasant to the ear.

What a crazy lass!

***

This time, He Chang'an stood beneath that crooked old pine tree for a full three hours, yet ultimately did not wait for the maiden to ride her sword back again.