Chapter 271: Miss Ning, I'm Sorry
Chen Ping'an didn't wait for Ning Yao to finish speaking before he said urgently, "Miss Ning, hold on a moment." Then he turned his head away, took off the Sword-Nurturing Gourd, and secretly took a sip of wine.
Ning Yao was a bit puzzled.
Could it be that this fellow had done something to be ashamed of in front of her? For instance, rushing all the way from Pearl Sword Cave Heaven to Inverted Mountain, racking up a pile of debts, all recorded under her Ning Yao's name?
Perhaps he had long abandoned that Mountain-Shaking Fist Manual, only practicing a few thousand punches before deciding that fist-fighting was useless, so now he had a sword case on his back and had started practicing swordsmanship, ultimately ending up mediocre at both?
Or maybe, in his wanderings through the martial world, the fool had luck on his side, surrounded by a whole circle of beautiful female friends, and they were now waiting for him at the inn?
Ning Yao's thoughts wandered in all directions.
But she never considered that Chen Ping'an might have lost the sword forged by Ruan Qiong.
How could that be? Across thousands of mountains and rivers, through spring, summer, autumn, and winter, he would definitely deliver the sword.
After drinking, Chen Ping'an suddenly stood up, walked down the steps, and faced Ning Yao. Behind Ning Yao stood the Sword Respect Pavilion, as if it contained the ten-thousand-year essence of the Sword Qi Great Wall, along with the dogwood and secluded bamboo. Chen Ping'an had crouched by the wall, thinking about all sorts of messy things, like the famous lines from poetry books: "All alone, with no one to share the dogwood," "Sitting alone in the secluded bamboo," the character "fierce" that A Liang and he had talked about, and the even more ancient engravings in the Restricted Area. Chen Ping'an had even imagined the scene of their reunion, never thinking it would be like this—sitting foolishly on the steps of Inverted Mountain, and then seeing her.
Ning Yao sat leisurely on the steps, leaning back with her elbows lazily propped on the higher step. Her eyes narrowed slightly, making her slender brows appear even longer and more captivating.
Seeing this, Chen Ping'an couldn't utter a single word. He turned his head and took another sip of wine.
Just as Chen Ping'an was about to speak.
Ning Yao suddenly raised an eyebrow, sat up straight, and asked, "Chen Ping'an, when did you become a drunkard?!"
All those words that had taken so much courage to muster, climbing like a mountain to the tip of his tongue, were frightened back into his stomach, as if falling off a cliff, shattered into pieces.
Chen Ping'an let out a sigh of lament, crouched on the ground, silent, scratching his head with both hands.
Ning Yao stood up and smiled, "Chen Ping'an, you seem to have grown taller, huh?"
Chen Ping'an abruptly stood up, reaching out a hand to signal Ning Yao not to step down those stairs. "Miss Ning, let me finish what I have to say!"
The boy raised his head high, puffed out his chest, clutched his wine gourd, and looked at the girl in the ink-green robe.
Ning Yao blinked, seemingly unable to guess what Chen Ping'an was up to.
Chen Ping'an said, "Miss Ning..."
He quickly shook his head and changed his address, "Ning Yao, I like you."
Ning Yao sat back down on the steps. "If you have the guts, say it louder."
Chen Ping'an then shouted at the top of his lungs, "Ning Yao! I like you!"
Ning Yao asked, "Who are you?"
Chen Ping'an's face broke into a brilliant smile, with no trace of nervousness left, filled with heroic spirit. "Da Li Prefecture's Dragon Spring, Chen Ping'an!"
Although Chen Ping'an knew that after giving the sword to Miss Ning, spending some time with her, and best of all, seeing her hometown and her friends at the Sword Qi Great Wall, it would be safest to decide whether to confess. At worst, Ning Yao might not like him, but they might still be friends.
But Chen Ping'an didn't want that.
Ning Yao stood up again. Her expression was strange as she asked Chen Ping'an, "Is liking someone really such a big deal?"
Chen Ping'an was completely confused, with no idea how to answer.
Do all girls in the world ask this question after being confessed to?
Chen Ping'an couldn't help but grumble inwardly at the old Sword Saint of Comb Water Country and the old boatman of Osmanthus Island—one with his crow's mouth, the other stubbornly refusing to pass on worldly experience.
Ning Yao stepped down from the steps and came in front of Chen Ping'an, extending a hand. "Give it to me."
Chen Ping'an said "oh," untied the knot, took off the wooden case from his back, and drew out the long sword forged by the saint Ruan Qiong. He handed it to the girl in front of him.
After Ning Yao received the long sword, she didn't draw it to check its edge but hung it on her right waist. She walked straight past Chen Ping'an, brushing shoulders with him.
When Chen Ping'an suddenly turned his head to look, he only saw her raise an arm and gently wave goodbye.
Chen Ping'an's lips moved slightly, but he couldn't say anything, because all his strength and courage had been used up on that previous sentence.
For a long time, he didn't want to turn his head or take back his gaze.
She walked farther and farther away, her figure gradually disappearing into the night.
Chen Ping'an turned around and walked back to the spot on the steps where he had been sitting. He began to mutter to himself, saying the words he hadn't had time to say.
Miss Ning, how have you been lately?
Miss Ning, on this trip, I've seen many interesting things. Should I tell you about them?
Miss Ning, you would never guess, but I promised you I'd practice a million punches, and now I'm only twenty thousand short.
Miss Ning, did you know that back in the ancestral home on Mud Vase Alley, when you smiled, I felt like the richest person in the world.
Ning Yao, I saw A Liang, but Master Qi is gone.
Ning Yao, I've been to Yellow Court Kingdom, Great Sui, Colorful Clothes Kingdom, Comb Water Country, Old Dragon City—I've been to many places. I've seen many girls, but none of them are as beautiful as you.
Miss Ning, you once asked me if I liked you, and I said no. You didn't seem unhappy. But now that I like you this much, you seem unhappy. I'm sorry.
Miss Ning, meeting you makes me very happy.
—
On the white jade square at the foot of Solitary Peak, the little Daoist boy in the fish-tail crown continued to sit on his cattail hassock, flipping through a book. These past few days were an important fasting period in the Green Obsidian World. Inverted Mountain had never considered itself part of the Grand All Heaven World, so this gate leading to the Sword Qi Great Wall wouldn't reopen until midnight the day after tomorrow. Otherwise, this would be one of the busiest areas of Inverted Mountain.
Because this place only passed people, not goods.
The real transit hub was deep in the heart of Inverted Mountain.
Around the eight docks, including the Catch-Release Pavilion and the Shangxiang Tower, there were roads sloping downward into the mountain's interior. In the early years, there had been a dispute between the two senior and junior brothers about whether to carve into the mountain wall to build a new large dock inside the mountain and whether to seek the guidance of that palm-teaching master in the Green Obsidian World. The Great Heavenly Lord of Inverted Mountain believed it was the trend of the times—why shouldn't Inverted Mountain earn more incense money?
The little Daoist boy, whose true identity besides being a gatekeeper was the second-in-command of Inverted Mountain, felt that any construction work on Inverted Mountain, even the slightest bit involving the Mountain Character Seal's main body, was a great disrespect to their master.
At the time, the two couldn't resolve the dispute and even resorted to fighting over it. Afterwards, they each lit three sticks of incense in the Shangxiang Tower, disturbing the palm-teaching master, who usually stayed in the heavens beyond heaven. The master first returned to White Jade Capital in the Green Obsidian World and then personally issued a decree. Only then did the two senior and junior brothers quiet down. But after that, the little Daoist boy, who had once held nearly as much power as his senior brother, angrily stopped handling any Inverted Mountain affairs, dumping everything on the Great Heavenly Lord, and just guarded his one cattail hassock.
The sword-carrying man sitting on the hitching post slept soundly all day but was wide awake at night, his eyes as bright as the bright moon. His face was full of amusement as he looked around, seemingly waiting for someone.
After waiting left and right without seeing the expected person, he grew impatient, jumped off the hitching post, walked around the mirror gate, and crouched beside the little Daoist boy. The only sound was the slow turning of the little Daoist boy's pages.
The little Daoist boy had been in a bad mood lately. Although he was a Daoist of the Great Heavenly Lord's lineage, he had a close relationship with Lu Chen, the Third Palm-Teacher. Seeing that effeminate surnamed Lu guy annoyed him. The little sissy had such a big mouth—even more annoying. The senior brother Great Heavenly Lord lost a fight, still annoying.
Why were there so many annoying things in this world?
Back when he hadn't been tricked by the Little Palm-Teacher Lu Chen into coming to this world's Inverted Mountain, staying in that White Jade Capital, there hadn't been so many annoyances. Every day, he accompanied Palm-Teacher Lu on a walk along the railing on the top floor, eagerly waiting for Palm-Teacher to return from the heavens beyond heaven to rest and recuperate. Occasionally, if they were lucky, they would encounter the rarely seen Dao Ancestor. Dao Ancestor was a busy man, rarely appearing in White Jade Capital. Either he was traveling through unknown secret realms, helping to stabilize luck and create cave paradises suitable for cultivators to live and practice, or he was observing the Dao in that Small Lotus Flower Cave Paradise. Of course, Dao Ancestor no longer needed to comprehend the Dao; according to his own teacher, what he called "observing the Dao" was merely watching others' small paths.
The little Daoist boy couldn't stand the sword-carrying man beside him. "When it comes down to it, isn't it just a little girl? What's there to see?"
The sword-carrying man laughed. "You don't understand. I'm here serving my sentence, being punished. It's rare to have a little interest."
The little Daoist boy closed his book and grinned. "Yo, just a door away, situated in the Grand All Heaven World, still a great sword immortal of the immortal realm? Little interest? How little?"
The middle-aged man shook his head and sighed. "Talking to a guy like you really isn't fun."
The man added another sentence, "At least the pair next door get along better than us. They've already started gambling a little for fun."
This caught the little Daoist boy's interest. "What are they betting on?"
The sword-carrying man tested the waters. "Will you lend me half your hassock to sit on?"
The little Daoist boy didn't move a muscle. "What do you think?"
The man didn't press the point and continued, "Old Yao next door and that knife-carrying Daoist nun are betting on whether the little girl, before dawn, will return to the Sword Qi Great Wall alone or with someone."
The little Daoist boy asked, "Can't it be that she doesn't return at all?"
The sword-carrying man shook his head, looking into the distance. "She will definitely return to the Sword Qi Great Wall."
The little Daoist boy asked, "Because of the glory of the Ning and Yao surnames?"
The man sighed, his expression complex.
The little Daoist boy's eyes lit up. He casually waved his sleeve, silently reciting two names in the accent of East Treasure Bottle Prefecture in his heart. Two green talismans were formed with a flick of his hand and then vanished in a flash.
The sword-carrying man flicked his finger, shattering the two wisps of talisman, which were even more ethereal than smoke. "Don't look at what shouldn't be seen, don't listen to what shouldn't be heard."
Two talismans: one was a Heaven-Earth Echo Talisman, the other a Breeze-Caressing-Face Talisman. The former could quickly travel through heaven and earth. As long as a conversation anywhere involved the words the talisman-drawer had silently recited, the talisman would activate and quietly record the dialogue. The latter, the Breeze-Caressing-Face Talisman, could find the person depicted on the talisman and send back images.
Both were of high rank and extremely difficult to draw, but in the mountain, they belonged to the chicken-rib category of Daoist talismans. Whether the Echo Talisman or the Breeze-Caressing-Face Talisman, when encountering places with forbidden techniques or dense baleful aura, they would rapidly consume the talisman's spiritual energy. For example, colliding with a mansion guarded by door gods, civil and military temples, City God pavilions, graveyards, etc.
Even if the talisman paper material was good, the backlash would be great. If the commotion was too big and detected by cultivators, it would naturally be seen as provocation. Following the clues, it would be easy to find the talisman-drawer, eventually leading to disputes.
So the two talismans were only suitable for reconnaissance in "lawless" places.
However, there was no problem for the little Daoist boy to control the two talismans on his own territory at Inverted Mountain.
Pity that the sword immortal of Inverted Mountain shattered them with a flick of his finger.
The sword-carrying man asked, "Want to bet?"
The little Daoist boy lacked interest and shook his head. "No bet. You're such a rotten gambler. Your gambling ethics rank in the top three of Inverted Mountain. If I gamble with you and lose, I'll definitely give you something. If I win, I definitely won't get anything. Why gamble? Not gambling."
The man was dejected. "I guess I have no hope in this life. Even being a gambler, I can't be number one."
The little Daoist boy thought of something interesting and laughed heartily. "You're better off. Look at those two broken swords inside the Sword Respect Pavilion, then look back at yourself. All kinds of people passing by, whether from the Sword Qi Great Wall or the Grand All Heaven World, who doesn't treat you with the utmost respect? In their eyes, even the fart of a living great sword immortal like you is fragrant."
The sword-carrying man wasn't angered and self-deprecatingly said, "So, staying here as a gatekeeper, I really shouldn't have any complaints."
The little Daoist boy put down his book, clasped his hands behind his head, and looked up at the sky.
The man murmured, "For common folk, after leaving home for a hundred years, their hometown pretty much becomes their homeland. For Qi Refiners, a thousand years counts. Then what about us, the exiles and refugees who have been here for over ten thousand years?"
The little Daoist boy didn't answer that question.
He couldn't answer.
—
The night over Inverted Mountain was deep, while on the other side of the gate, the blazing sun hung high.
Similarly, two people were stationed at the gate—one from the Sword Qi Great Wall and one from Inverted Mountain.
An old gray-robed sword cultivator was openly refining his natal flying sword, while beside him stood a middle-aged Daoist nun with a dharma blade hanging at her waist.
The Daoist nun frowned. "Miss Ning going to Inverted Mountain privately is against the rules. When the Great Heavenly Lord demands an explanation, I'll just tell the truth."
The old sword cultivator nodded. "Just tell it as it is. I'll take responsibility."
From afar, a group of young boys and girls approached. They were all famous darlings of the Sword Qi Great Wall.
Although almost everyone came from prominent families and could be called children of destiny, in the recent great war, within less than three years, these children had already gone to battle three times and had lost two friends. One, nicknamed Little Cricket, had died on the battlefield south of the city wall. The other had completed his training and returned to the Confucian Academy.
A handsome boy had two long swords hanging from his waist—one sheathed, named "Scripture," and one unsheathed, named "Cloud Pattern."
A fat boy had a naturally happy face but carried the heaviest killing intent, with a sword named "Purple Lightning" at his waist.
A one-armed girl carried an oversized sword called "Suppressing Mountain" on her back.
An ugly, scarred dark-skinned boy had a sword named "Red Makeup."
The old sword cultivator had no good expression for these little brats and continued refining his sword.
However, the Master Sword Daoist nun, who had no connection to any of the major families of the Sword Qi Great Wall, showed a sincere smile and greeted the children.
Calling these brats children was only in terms of their size and age. In fact, their brilliant futures and future achievements were visible to almost the entire Sword Qi Great Wall. Especially when they stepped onto the city wall and then went down to the southern battlefield, experiencing battles firsthand, they had already earned enough respect.
On the Sword Qi Great Wall, no matter what your surname, you had to go to the battlefield.
Of course, there were some differences. It depended on the cultivation level of the escorting sword master. Poor young sword cultivators from humble families could only obediently accept the sword masters assigned by the Sword Qi Great Wall. Whereas the children of major families, when they first went to battle, would definitely have someone secretly following them. Usually, it was a powerful retainer without current duties. But unless they were in a life-or-death situation, these people wouldn't easily intervene.
To the north of the Sword Qi Great Wall, every inch of this soil was soaked with sword energy passed down through generations from ancient times.
To the south, every inch was soaked with the blood of ancestors.
These people had different temperaments. The fat boy pestered the Master Sword Daoist nun, imitating someone's lousy dirty talk, but was instead called a silly goose by the Inverted Mountain Daoist nun. The one-armed girl stared intently at the old sword cultivator's technique for refining his sword. The handsome boy was displeased. The dark-skinned boy stared blankly at the gate, having heard that just a stone's throw away was another world, where there was only one sun and one moon. The scenery there was of green mountains and clear waters. The boy couldn't imagine what "green mountains and clear waters" meant.
The handsome boy kept tapping his sword hilts with both palms, appearing impatient. He grumbled, "If I see that guy, I'm afraid I won't be able to resist chopping at him. You guys must hold me back then."
The fat boy snickered, "Hold you back? Just chop him down. Then Ning Yao will chop you into minced meat. Two annoying people gone at once. Killing two birds with one stone. Don't worry, I'll take care of both the Scripture and Cloud Pattern swords."
After joking, the fat boy was somewhat helpless. "About that guy, Ning Yao doesn't want to talk much. She just says the same few words: the fool from Pearl Sword Cave Heaven, a good-for-nothing pushover, a money-grubber... I feel like, if we have to choose, maybe that bookworm from the academy is more likable? After all, he fought alongside us several times and even saved Dong Black Coal once. He barely deserves Ning Yao."
The ugly boy glared fiercely at the fat boy.
The latter wasn't afraid at all and winked back.
The handsome boy asked, "Could we be overthinking this? With Ning Yao's temperament, can she really fall for anyone in this lifetime?"
The one-armed girl thought carefully, and characteristically terse, she concluded, "Hard!"
—
Late at night on Inverted Mountain, a spirited girl in an ink-green robe with two swords at her waist appeared near the foot of Solitary Peak. She didn't even glance at the sword-carrying man or the little Daoist boy and walked straight into the mirror.
In an instant, she stepped back out of the mirror. Under the blazing sun, she looked up and instinctively squinted.
Inside and outside the gate, the sword-carrying man and the little Daoist boy in the fish-tail crown, along with the old gray-robed sword cultivator and the Master Sword Daoist nun, all looked at each other without prior arrangement.
As for the girl's peers, those friends who admired and respected her, they all sighed in relief, not thinking much of it. They felt that today, with Ning Yao returning to the Sword Qi Great Wall alone, the weather really was nice.
As they walked, the dark-skinned boy named Dong turned his head. "Sister Ning?"
Ning Yao hummed in response, quickened her pace, and caught up with them.
Then she passed them.
The four who had been laughing and chatting fell silent.
—
Outside the Sword Respect Pavilion on Inverted Mountain, Chen Ping'an stood up, planning to return to the Stork Inn.
Just as he stood up, he noticed a middle-aged couple approaching from afar, dressed simply, both with ordinary features and smiling expressions. They glanced at him and then looked at the Sword Respect Pavilion behind him.
Chen Ping'an lowered his head, adjusted the wine gourd that he had never actually drunk from, and prepared to leave.
The woman spoke softly with a smile, "This is our first time visiting the Sword Respect Pavilion. We've heard it's very large. Are there any special rules or stories?"
Chen Ping'an stopped and thought for a moment before nodding. "How about I give you a tour?"
The man and woman exchanged a smile and both nodded. "Alright."