Chapter 530: Southern Flower Radiant Taiji
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 530: Southern Flower Radiant Taiji
"Great Hero Tang."
"Speak."
"Come to think of it, it's quite strange."
"What is?"
"The Dark Sky Emperor, I mean. His death rattle was truly thunderous. They say that in life, he searched desperately for Wudang's founding patriarch... Perfected Zhang Sanfeng. Don't you wonder what he would have asked for if they had actually met? Any ordinary swordsman would have begged to behold a single stroke of the Wisdom Sword."
"Look here, Heon-ga."
"I have told you several times, my name is Heonwon-ssi..."
"Don't you have any more useful stories? I believe I've told you before. Everything you are must be poured into this sword. That is how a divine weapon's spirituality is forged. Your internal energy and breath have seeped into it well enough, but your life story is far too lacking."
"Are you belittling the hardships Lord Jeong and I overcame together?"
"Of course, being buried alone in the dirt was certainly an ordeal. I'll grant you that."
"To be honest, I find it hard to believe. There's no way the masters of divine weapons all babbled nonsense to their blades like madmen..."
"Since your martial prowess is lacking, you must make up for it with devotion. The extraordinary artifacts of this world, be they magic swords or demonic swords, are highly selective of their masters. At your current realm, you cannot fully wield an absurd divine weapon like this fellow here, so it's only right to take precautions beforehand."
"What do you mean, 'precautions'? Spoken like a true master of the Tang Clan."
"Enough. Tell me that story about Zhang Sanfeng instead."
"Ah, Perfected Zhang Sanfeng... There are countless anecdotes about him in every province. Well, it happened back in the sixty-eighth year of Geonreung, when I stopped by an inn in Kaifeng with an empty stomach. A shockingly beautiful young couple was approached by some experts of the Wudang lay sect, and then..."
* * *
Jeong Yeon-shin knew. Ever since he ascended to the Purple Rank of the Desolate Fortress, assumed the title of Acting Commander of the Divine Sword Corps, and was counted among the Five Great Swords of the World, the entire world had been watching his every move.
But here, it was different.
No powerful figure or great sect could scrutinize him here.
Even if they were incredibly lucky enough to track his movements, the best they could do was make vague guesses.
"..."
It was a quiet mountain path.
Jeong Yeon-shin walked with his shoulders slightly relaxed, glancing up at the plaque hanging overhead. He had heard this place was located at the very center of the temples that collectively made up the Wudang Sect.
Though called a gate, it was in truth merely a wooden board tied to one of the ancient pine trees tangling over the path.
The only unusual thing about it was the exceptionally thick, fragrant scent of pine.
However...
That is...
Jeong Yeon-shin glanced at the writing on the plaque once more.
It was a plaque whose true origin was disputed by three different legends. Even the Wudang Sect itself couldn't provide a definitive answer.
One rumor claimed it was a gift bestowed by the Former Empress Dowager, who had been deeply moved by Zhang Sanfeng's martial arts and character.
Another rumor said it was one of the tokens of appreciation given by Emperor Yongle—who had driven the imperial family from Nanjing to the north to confront the Demonfolk—to the great sects like the Desolate Fortress that had refrained from intervening in the civil war.
Lastly, there was a story that Zhang Sanfeng himself had crudely fashioned it.
Looking at it now, it was clearly the third.
He could feel it in the strokes of the calligraphy—the lingering trace of an Imugi that had died coiled in the shape of a Taiji diagram.
Jade Purity Gate.
The characters seemed to gently draw in one's soul.
[Jade Purity. Another form of the most exalted Dao in Taoism... the first of the Three Pure Powers. Of course, as is always the case with religion, some view Jade Purity as the last.]
Step.
Jeong Yeon-shin felt a soft touch on his shoulder and turned his head. He saw the profile of a woman with long black hair hanging down like a soft sword.
Her presence was subtle yet peerless, like the lingering incense of an ancestral rite. It was Shin Cheon-hwa, the former-former Commander of the Divine Sword Corps.
Where have you been all this time?
But he couldn't pursue the thought.
As he climbed further up the mountain, he reached a low hill where a dozen Taoist priests stood waiting. They raised their hands together in perfect unison.
Their sleeves, draping down to their elbows, moved in flawless synchronization.
They exuded an immense nobility.
Yet their robes were a faded white. Not a single one wore new clothes.
"Greetings, Taoist Friend Flash Art. This is the Sword-Releasing Pond."
The middle-aged man at the front spoke.
He possessed a broad jawline and a heavy aura. This was Perfected Jade Cliff Hyeon Muk, who had briefly exchanged greetings with Jeong Yeon-shin earlier. He was said to be the new Acting Sect Leader of the Wudang Sect, which had recently lost even Perfected Ancient Sword.
Right behind him stood Long Staff Ju Se-hwa.
She offered a formal greeting to Jeong Yeon-shin just like the other Wudang priests, but her demeanor carried a subtle politeness that hadn't been there before. Her posture was no longer as stiffly unyielding as it once was.
Jeong Yeon-shin spoke slowly.
"I apologize for causing such a disturbance over the past few days. It was unseemly of a guest."
A few of the priests flinched slightly—a reaction to behavior that completely defied their expectations. Jeong Yeon-shin understood.
Who would have expected the person who drew his sword the moment he arrived at Mount Wudang to actually be a gentleman? Even the perfected ones, who had cultivated miraculous divine power, couldn't help but be surprised.
These are not Jianghu bandits, but the Wudang Sect. They all know propriety and righteousness.
He thought.
Indeed, after Jeong Yeon-shin showed his respects, the atmosphere softened considerably. It was an exchange between a Purple Rank of the Desolate Fortress and the immortals of Wudang. Naturally, the "relinquishing of the sword" proceeded smoothly.
True to the name of Wudang's Sword-Releasing Pond, it was the act of temporarily surrendering one's weapon.
Along with all the killing intent, sins, and chaotic thoughts harbored within that weapon.
Slide.
"We shall guard it with everything our sect possesses."
The young priest who received Lingering Thunder with both hands spoke calmly.
He was a Brightfolk of the same Un generation as Ju Se-hwa, a disciple of Perfected Jade Cliff, and a dharma grandson of Perfected Mystic Concord. He was also the successor of the Taiji Wisdom Sword.
This was proof of the utmost courtesy.
Jeong Yeon-shin merely nodded slightly, his expression unreadable.
Guided by the Wudang experts, he passed countless temples before being led to the largest residence as his temporary quarters.
It was a pavilion adorned with elegant blue roof tiles.
"You may walk freely anywhere you wish. Aside from the Heavenly Way Hall, where our sect's secret manuals are kept, there are no other restricted areas," Perfected Jade Cliff said.
He remained outside the pavilion's threshold, yet his attitude was deeply respectful.
He was clearly treating Jeong Yeon-shin as the practical leader of the Desolate Fortress—standing on equal footing with the pinnacle of the Wudang Sect.
This was something the fifteen-year-old boy from Xinye County, who had lived within arm's reach of Shaolin and Wudang, could never have imagined.
Jeong Yeon-shin stared at him quietly before asking,
"Is there an urgent matter?"
"Yes. However, as it is a private matter of our sect..."
He firmly drew a line.
Jeong Yeon-shin did not press further.
Rustle.
With that, Perfected Jade Cliff and the other priests departed. They walked in a great hurry, and the smooth, undulating propulsion shockwave characteristic of the Wudang Cloud-Ladder Step could be felt in their wake.
One person remained. It was Long Staff Ju Se-hwa.
"There is one thing I would like to ask," she said quietly.
Her manner of speaking had changed. Was it because she had witnessed him fighting on equal terms with Perfected Mystic Concord? Ju Se-hwa asked softly, employing the utmost formality.
"While you are staying here, our disciples will attend to you, but it is difficult to pinpoint Lord Jeong's aura from a distance. Is there a particular reason why you constantly maintain the state of Return to Simplicity?"
"Because it will be the same for my enemies."
Jeong Yeon-shin did not bother to boast of the perfection of the Vice Commander of the Divine Sword Corps. He merely glanced at Ju Se-hwa once and walked into his temporary quarters.
[My junior seems to be in a foul mood. In that case, one room should suffice.]
Shin Cheon-hwa, with her hands clasped behind her back, followed closely beside Jeong Yeon-shin. Her purple hem brushed his shoulder with a familiar softness.
The skin beneath Ju Se-hwa's eyes twitched slightly in bewilderment.
"...Our Mystic Eye Palace, which specializes in Eye Techniques, is currently scanning the mountain. The moment the Sect Leader is spotted, we will send you a sound transmission. However, as you know, the slopes of Wudang are vast, and the Sect Leader's Wudang Cloud-Ladder Step is highly elusive..."
"Do so. Do not rush."
Jeong Yeon-shin replied briefly, stepped onto the wooden veranda, and slowly disappeared through the doorway.
It was the beginning of his seclusion.
An air born from the defeat of an eighteen-year-old youth seeped deep into every crevice of the blue roof tiles.
A sticky, swamp-like sensation and a lingering sense of loss settled over the area like a faint mist.
After that, no other sound was heard.
* * *
There was a man wearing a bamboo hat.
He stood beneath a plaque that read "Upper Clarity Gate."
He sat casually on the dirt ground. Though the tip of the scabbard at his waist pressed heavily into the earth, his empty right sleeve fluttered peacefully in the wind.
"Hmm."
The man suddenly groaned aloud.
"I've been waiting quite a while."
This was a temple more than twenty li away from the Jade Purity Gate.
"..."
Over a hundred Taoist priests surrounded him. Not only did they encircle the open courtyard, but those standing upon the edges of the temple's roof also exuded a thick scent of pine.
The Songmun Ancient Swords gripped in their hands hummed with infused internal energy.
In their midst, the Acting Sect Leader, Perfected Jade Cliff, rested his hand on the hilt of his sword.
Beneath the hem of his robe, dust swirled in spirals, repeatedly rising to his waist before falling back down.
He asked quietly, "Is the isolation properly established? The formation, I mean."
To his left, Perfected Jade Radiance replied, his smile fading.
"Yes, but perhaps we should request the assistance of the guest at the Jade Purity Gate even now..."
"Entrust all of our sect's troubles to a guest we earnestly invited and temporarily took in? And to deal with none other than those who are practically natural disasters themselves...?"
"..."
"This is a matter of shame that could lead to death. While the Taiji circulates through the world without obstruction, a person has only one face in this mortal realm. Furthermore, what if the Sect Leader suddenly bursts into the main mountain while we are occupied? He would surely seek out the quarters of Martial Uncle Ancient Sword, where our guest is currently staying."
It was then.
The man in the bamboo hat slowly stood up.
"I happen to be quite a coward."
The moment he spoke, the surroundings fell dead silent. A wind carrying a wisp of cloud swirled through the area like faint smoke.
"So I deliberately avoided the Sword-Releasing Pond."
"..."
"Looking at it now, it was an excellent choice. Taking away the guests' swords while the hosts freely hold their own. Is this not the ultimate profound truth that all swordsmen should strive to attain? It is indeed a precious lesson."
Slide.
He awkwardly raised his single fist.
It was a clumsy fist-and-palm salute.
An ambiguous smile played on the man's lips, but the slight twitch of his mouth overwhelmingly crushed the surroundings like a gust of sword wind.
"I heard there is a mad old man here lost in closed-door cultivation, and I was hoping to join him."
"False, true, false, false."
The woman to the right of Perfected Jade Cliff whispered quickly. She was a priest with disheveled hair—Perfected Jade Gaze of Wudang's Seven Star Venerables of Taehwa.
Thus, at this moment, the Wudang forces filling the courtyard were equivalent to more than three martial units of the Divine Sword Corps.
And not just any ordinary martial units, but comparable to the Thread-Annihilation Unit, the Wish-Fulfilling Spring, or the Demonlight Wing in its prime.
They could well be called invincible.
And their opponent was the very person who had killed Perfected Ancient Sword—the sworn enemy of the Wudang Sect.
Yet Perfected Jade Cliff kept his mouth tightly shut.
His momentum... is absurdly fierce.
Sword Qi transparently enveloped the courtyard without a single shred of waste. How could a man who had lost an arm still be one of the Five Great Swords of the World?
This was a grave problem.
If ten Wudang experts died, more than a thousand commoners at the foot of the mountain would lose their lives.
This was due to none other than famine and the Strange, Violent, Chaotic, and Supernatural. Protecting against such disasters had always been the responsibility of the Wudang Sect.
Furthermore, they had no choice but to assume mutual destruction in this situation.
"..."
Amidst the prolonged silence, Perfected Jade Cliff made his decision. Before they knew it, the evening twilight was swallowing the surroundings like the shadow of a giant's sword.
"Are you not ready yet? I should have brought a flute."
The man in the bamboo hat began to stroke his hilt, his patience as a polite guest seemingly running thin.
"...Jade Radiance."
"Yes, Acting Sect Leader."
"Open the Heavenly Way Hall, and request the presence of our guest."
* * *
How many days had passed?
It was after Shin Cheon-hwa had gone out for a walk.
Jeong Yeon-shin flinched. He was curled up, his back bent on the thin mattress—a sleeping habit of his that no one ever saw.
Hummm—
Suddenly, a vibration resonated from his waist. It was not Lingering Thunder, but the Songmun Ancient Sword. The Baihui Point deep beneath his thick hair also grew suddenly cold.
It was unmistakable.
The sensation of the Upper Dantian's function activating.
Mount Wudang was said to be one of the most sacred mountains in the world, shrouded in mystery. It was a place overlaid with the traces of Taoist priests who had cultivated immortal secrets for hundreds of years. The mountain slopes themselves were akin to a Dharma Treasure.
Since even the mounted martial artists of the Yuan Dynasty, who were said to be truly monstrous, could not ultimately violate this place, an occurrence of this level was entirely plausible.
Was not Shin Cheon-hwa also a deceased soul sustained by such mysteries?
However...
Sssss—
Strangely, a fragrant scent of pine wafted from the hilt—something none of the Wudang Sect members had found odd. Jeong Yeon-shin noticed it even with his eyes closed.
And he sensed an unfamiliar presence near his head.
A sensation flickering faintly like a candle flame.
It was not Shin Cheon-hwa. It was not as solid as her.
Jeong Yeon-shin opened his eyes immediately.
"What...!"
It took only an instant for his mind to turn completely white. It was hot beyond comparison. Like formless thunder slicing through the night sky, three characters suddenly filled his mind to the brim.
Flickering in the realm of intuition.
Zhang Sanfeng.
It was the name of the presence.