Chapter 241: It’s Easier to Brag After Drinking a Sword Immortal’s Wine
Wang Yiran had a solemn expression as he turned around and leaped onto the railing of the waterside pavilion. He didn't have time to deal with his frightened female relatives in the pavilion, and he rapidly dashed toward the pool to scoop up his defeated daughter.
The young villa master of Sword Water Villa was unfazed, and the young scholar rocking his fan clicked his tongue in wonder and remarked, "I didn't expect him to be a powerful martial artist hiding his true strength."
The young scholar closed his folding fan with a crack before focusing his gaze on the young boy who was disappearing further and further into the distance. This young boy with the sword case on his back was definitely a lesser grandmaster at the fourth tier of martial arts!
Perhaps he was the final disciple of Colorful Garment Nation's sword god? However, the cultivation world was dangerous and his master had been violently killed in a mountain, so he had no option but to disguise himself as a traveling cultivator from another nation?
Had he traveled far away to flee from danger? Otherwise, who could have raised such a young martial arts prodigy? He had reached the grandmaster stage even earlier than Song Fengshan.
Song Fengshan's wife, a beautiful and virtuous-looking young woman, couldn't help but ask in a soft voice, "Will Shanhu be okay?"
Song Fengshan imperceptibly caressed the hilt of his sword, Vast Water, with his thumb. He smiled and remained silent.
The young scholar smiled faintly and explained, "Please rest assured, milady. Lady Wang isn't in any danger, nor has she been severely wounded. The young boy used a clever technique, and he only used the external power of his fist aura to knock Lady Wang unconscious.
"Lady Wang only suffered some external wounds that won't affect her physique or soul. The young boy restrained himself at just the right moment. I believe that he was heeding the words of Villa Master Wang — a person shouldn't make their path in the cultivation world too narrow."
Sure enough, Shanhu slowly regained consciousness after Wang Yiran carried her back to the waterside pavilion and tapped several of her acupoints. Apart from appearing extremely disheveled, being completely soaked, having some of her skin revealed, and losing all of her face, her condition and aura seemed fairly okay.
She struggled to stand up, and her forehead was red and swollen as she stood with her back facing the others. She propped a hand against a column and placed her other hand over her mouth. The soaked and slender young girl had watery eyes, and appeared charmingly pitiful in stark contrast to her normally aloof nature.
The young girl who was joining in on the fun with no regard for the serious nature of the situation craned her neck and dazedly looked at Chen Ping’an drinking on the mountain path. "Wow! He's truly a powerful person!" she exclaimed in astonishment.
The young scholar stole a quick glance at Shanhu's slender figure, which was on full display thanks to her drenched clothes. The corners of his lips curled up into a slight smile. Her legs were long and shapely, and the naive young boy was most likely unfamiliar with the flavor of such legs. To experienced young masters from powerful clans like him, however, it was well known that such legs were the most damaging to the health of men.
One issue had just concluded, but another issue immediately arose.
There was a notion of subordinates sacrificing themselves when their master was humiliated in the cultivation world, and the man with the ox horn bow seemingly saw the reserved snickers of a few other guards and subordinates as he stood among the other trusted subordinates in the waterside pavilion.
His anger instantly filled him with courage. He let out a roar, then grabbed his precious bow which had taken a craftsman ten years to make. At the same time, he grabbed an arrow with white fletching from his quiver and drew his bow to full. "An evildoer like you dares to injure the young mistress? Eat my arrow!"
Unexpected situations were occurring one after another, so even Unruly Saber Villa's Villa Master Wang — who was renowned for his composure and his steadfast techniques — couldn't help but feel a little angry.
"Ma Lu! You can't shoot someone in the back!" he bellowed.
Chen Ping'an was already a hundred paces away, and was just about to turn back around. However, he faltered slightly, and saw someone standing on a branch atop a towering tree with their hands clasped behind their back out of the corners of his eyes. The mountain wind brushed past, and the branch under the old man in black's feet also bounced up and down like gently undulating water. He appeared especially impressive as he stood there.
The two of them exchanged a quick glance, and the old man quickly nodded in acknowledgment. Upon seeing this, Chen Ping'an abandoned his urge to lash out. However, he still turned around to face the waterside pavilion.
The old man instantly vanished, then reappeared on the narrow mountain path in the next moment. He was like a wisp of smoke as he brushed past Chen Ping'an. He raised his arm and extended a finger, pointing it upward.
An arrow sliced through the air, but it was stopped by the old man's fingertip just like that. The shaft of the arrow shattered under the immense force of the impact, yet the old man's finger remained unmoving and uninjured.
The old man gently pinched the arrowhead with two fingers. With a casual toss, the arrowhead whistled back and pierced through the hand of the archer.
The man was a fearless person, however, and he refused to drop his ox horn bow just because of this. His wounded hand hung limply by his side, but he still held his bow up with the other. His eyes were wide with anger and ferocity as he glared at the uninvited guest.
"When journeying through the cultivation world, one is responsible for one's own life and death!" the old man in black said with a cold expression. "Have your elders not taught you this simple principle before? So be it if you don't follow any rules in other areas of the cultivation world in Water Combing Nation. You can do whatever you like. However, this is unacceptable in Sword Water Villa."
Song Fengshan's wife stood up and performed an elegant curtsy. "Patriarch," she greeted respectfully.
Wang Yiran's expression changed slightly, and he hurriedly cupped his fists and lowered his head. "Unruly Saber Villa's Wang Yiran pays his respects to Sword Saint Song!"
The young scholar immediately smacked the young girl's head, signaling for her to stand up. He then bowed and said, "Mount Xiaochong's Han Clan disciple, Han Yuanshan, pays his respects to Old Villa Master."
The young girl was a lively person who wasn't frightened by the situation at all. She copied her older brother, bowing but not lowering her head. She looked straight ahead at the extremely famous immortal and said in a childish voice, "Mount Xiaochong's Han Clan disciple, Han Yuanxue, pays her respects to Old Villa Master."
After Sword Saint Song Yushao showed himself, his grandson, Song Fengshan, was surprisingly the last person to stand up. His voice was emotionless as he slowly said, "Grandfather, your trip to the outside world was quite short this time. I thought that you would only be willing to return after all of the guests left and the villa became quiet and peaceful again." This chapter is updated by nov(e)(l)biin.com
The old man looked around, and he simply remarked, "What a foul atmosphere."
He then turned around and simply left with Chen Ping'an. The influential Han Clan from Water Combing Nation's Mount Xiaochong? The villa master of Unruly Saber Villa? He paid no heed to these things, as if they were all beneath him. The old villa master couldn't be bothered even taking an extra glance at them.
Song Yushao walked side-by-side with Chen Ping'an, and his expression only became slightly forlorn after he turned his back to the others. After walking half a kilometer, he said in self-ridicule, "My clan has gone astray, and they're even inferior to a waterfall now. Apologies for the embarrassing sight."
Chen Ping'an didn't know how to respond, so he could only reply with some generic but polite words. "The people in the villa are actually quite fine. They're not as bad as you make them out to be, Senior."
Every family had their own hardships, so the old man was unwilling to talk about the shortcomings of his clan in front of outsiders regardless of how magnanimous and open-minded he was. He changed the topic and said, "Why did you suddenly change your mind when you threw that punch? Why did you only use thirty or fourty percent of your strength?
"The future villa master of Unruly Saber Villa is a stubborn person who isn't easy to deal with. She might not appreciate your mercy, and she might even cause you trouble in the future. Nowadays, people in the cultivation world only care about their own feelings and happiness. I strongly dislike this, but I'm also unable to appreciate your lack of firmness."
Chen Ping'an drank some wine and used the back of his hand to wipe his mouth. He smiled and replied, "Punching someone to death simply because I'm unhappy is far too much. In any case, I'm about to leave Water Combing Nation very soon, so it won't be easy for Unruly Saber Villa to cause trouble for me even if they want to. What's she going to do, curse me behind my back? It's not like I can hear her curses anyway."
Song Yushao turned around to glance at Chen Ping’an, who had a sincere expression on his face. His attitude was unexpected, yet it was also understandable at the same time. Song Yushao smiled and remarked, "It's fine for a bunch of old bones like me to say something like this, as I already have one foot in the grave. Nothing matters anymore, so what can I do? However, you're only fifteen or sixteen, right? It's truly boring to hear you speak in such a mature manner."
Chen Ping'an didn't rebut the old man. The gloominess weighing on his mind had already cleared up significantly after he threw that punch, and this was already enough.
He suddenly recalled something, and warned in a quiet voice, "The mama from the old temple who referred to herself as one of the four evil spirits of Water Combing Nation has come to your villa with a huge man. You need to be careful, Senior."
Song Yushao laughed heartily and replied, "This is nothing. Counting the young master from the Han Clan who's sitting in the waterside pavilion, the infamous four evil spirits of Water Combing Nation have all gathered in my villa already."
"Senior Song, can I practice fist techniques at the waterfall for the next couple of days?" Chen Ping'an suddenly asked.
Song Yushao immediately agreed to his request without asking any questions. "Why not? I'll immediately notify everyone that the area from the Mountain and Water Pavilion to the waterfall is a restricted area of Sword Water Villa. Anyone who enters without permission will be punished by death."
Chen Ping'an scratched his head in an uneasy manner. "I can go over to practice my fist techniques at night when there's no one enjoying the scenery at the waterfall. There's no need to seal the area in the morning, that would be far too unreasonable."
Song Yushao shook his head and laughed heartily, replying, "You're far too reserved, young lad. Do I need to speak reason with others when sealing off an area and keeping it shit-free in my own territory?"
Chen Ping'an could only accept this and say, "If there's anything the villa needs help with, please do let me know, Senior."
The old man patted the iron sword on his knees and huffed, "My sword is different from the two swords on your back."
An awkward expression appeared on Chen Ping'an's face, and he grabbed his Sword Nurturing Gourd and focused on drinking, not saying anything else.
Song Yushao suppressed a chuckle and retied his sword to his waist. He then stood up and said, "Feel free to practice your fist techniques whenever you want. You can stay in the villa for as long as you like. Oh, that's right, your wine doesn't smell good at all. When I get back, I'll tell someone to bring you a few jars of flower carving brew. It's been buried underground for almost twenty years, and that's what I call a good wine! Just what in the world are you drinking right now? It's no better than water. More importantly, you always like to take one or two sips regardless of whether there's anyone around. I can't help but feel embarrassed for you."
With a tap of his foot, the old man swayed and instantly appeared on a tall branch in the distance. With a few nimble bounds, he immediately vanished from sight.
Chen Ping'an sat in the Mountain and Water Pavilion by himself.
He had come across this senior twice, and he couldn't help but recall City God Shen Wen from Colorful Garment Nation's Blusher Prefecture. Even though one was a renowned pure martial artist in the cultivation world and one was a scholarly deity who enjoyed incense offerings — oh, and there was also the Qi refiner who had taken Luanluan as his disciple as well — he had a nagging feeling that the three of them were quite similar in a sense. However, he couldn't quite put a finger on what it was. In any case, Chen Ping'an felt like he genuinely couldn't buy the cheapest liquor for his wine gourd anymore after interacting with them.
Well, this didn't matter. After all, he was soon about to receive the best wine in Sword Water Villa, wasn't he?
Most importantly, he didn't need to spend any money!
And thus, Chen Ping'an was in a very good mood when he left the Mountain and Water Pavilion and returned to his temporary residence.
When he arrived in the courtyard, Xu Yuanxia and Zhang Shanfeng exchanged a glance upon seeing his joyful expression. What was going on? Was visiting the waterfall that effective?
Chen Ping'an happily sat down beside the stone table and chuckled, "I'm going to practice fist techniques at the waterfall tonight. Who wants to come with me?"
"Perhaps you peeped on a beautiful woman bathing near the waterfall?" the big-bearded martial artist asked with a sly grin. "If such a beautiful sight exists, then count me in!"
Zhang Shanfeng blinked and added, "I can keep a lookout for the two of you."
Chen Ping'an felt slightly exasperated, and he explained, "How can that be possible? In fact, I even got into a conflict with some people at the waterfall. I had a fight, and my opponent was seemingly someone from Unruly Saber Villa. Fortunately, Senior Song stepped in and helped me block an arrow from one of their subordinates. Otherwise, I most likely would have had to keep fighting them. If things continued like that, I might have ended up dragging the two of you down with me as well..."
Xu Yuanxia clicked his tongue in wonder and remarked, "Chen Ping'an, drag us down as well? I'm an unrefined man, so how can you covet my beauty? If you ask me, I'd say that Zhang Shanfeng is indeed quite beautiful. When I go to the small town, I'll help him buy some female clothes. Afterward, we can get him to wander around the waterfall. Maybe I'll even become a matchmaker for the two of you and successfully unite you in love and marriage..."
Chen Ping'an almost spat out the wine that he was drinking.
Zhang Shanfeng feigned vomiting, and he hurriedly scurried away from his two friends. There was mock anger on his face as he exclaimed, "Even rabbits don't feed on the grass beside their nests! Yet, the two of you are actually targeting your brother as well? You're taking things too far!"
Chen Ping'an quietly stood up and walked over to sit on another stone chair, distancing himself from Xu Yuanxia.
The big-bearded martial artist stroked his beard and asked, "What's wrong? For the sake of our brothers, we should even be willing to take blades to our chests. That being the case, what's wrong with changing into female clothes? Brother, you can't be so disloyal!"
Zhang Shanfeng cupped his fists and begged for forgiveness, continually retreating as he said, "I'm going to study some classics in my room. Since the two of you are so loyal, why don't you enjoy the conversation by yourselves?"
Xu Yuanxia roared with laughter.
Chen Ping'an smiled knowingly.
Steward Chu coincidentally arrived at this moment, and he had come with a few subordinates to deliver four large jars of flavorful wine. He left after delivering them, but it was clear that he was behaving more respectfully and cheerfully toward Chen Ping'an.
In reality, Zhang Shanfeng didn't like to drink. Thus, Chen Ping'an was just about to split the wine in half with Xu Yuanxia, giving him two of the four jars. However, Xu Yuanxia hesitated for a moment before smiling and shaking his head, saying, "One jar is enough for me. You can take three, Chen Ping'an."
Chen Ping'an was slightly puzzled.
Xu Yuanxia looked around and didn't notice anything out of the ordinary. Only then did he point at the vermilion wine gourd by Chen Ping'an's waist and chuckle softly, "Do you really think I didn't notice anything? I didn't travel around the cultivation world for nothing, and I was simply too embarrassed to say anything in the past. This is similar to how Zhang Shanfeng introduced himself as Zhang Shan at the start. Who doesn't have some secrets when adventuring through the cultivation world? Your wine gourd is either a legendary pocket treasure from the immortal forces or it's an even more valuable Sword Nurturing Gourd. Am I correct?"
The big-bearded martial artist pointed at his eyes and said, "Haha, I can already see through everything."
Chen Ping'an didn't deny anything, and he replied softly, "I'm sorry for hiding this from the two of you for so long."
Xu Yuanxia rolled his eyes and huffed, "Come on, what is there to apologize about? Being careless in the cultivation world is the true crime toward one's friends."
A forlorn expression appeared on the big-bearded martial artist's face after he said this. He cracked open a jar of beautiful mountain villa wine that had been sealed for a long time and poured some into his ordinary wine pot. He swished it around after filling it, and he added, "I'm not trying to be polite. I suffered a lot myself, so I know how things are."
Xu Yuanxia gulped down large mouthfuls of wine. There was still more than half a jar remaining, so he could definitely drink his fill.
Chen Ping'an didn't say anything upon seeing that Xu Yuanxia was in low spirits. He also started drinking, but he drank slowly, unlike the big-bearded martial artist who was lapping it up like a cow.
Xu Yuanxia downed an entire pot of wine in a few breaths. His beard was filled with beads of wine, and he casually wiped it with his hand before chuckling and asking, "Your wine gourd is filled with the same wine, but will it taste different from mine?"
Chen Ping'an smiled and tossed his wine gourd to the big-bearded martial artist. "Here, try it yourself."
Xu Yuanxia raised the Sword Nurturing Gourd high into the air before tilting his head backward and gulping down a large mouthful of wine. He then tossed the wine gourd back to Chen Ping'an and remarked in satisfaction, "It does taste a bit better!"
"What bullshit!" Chen Ping'an replied with a grin. "The wine in my wine gourd is the cheapest wine from some small town. How can it compare to the mountain villa's twenty-year flower carving brew?"
Xu Yuanxia was slightly drunk, with his face flushed red as he stood up and shakily walked to his room. He was going to have a nice, long sleep. However, he stopped, turned around and replied with a grin, "It's the wine of a future great sword immortal, so how can it not taste good? It tastes very good!"
He turned back toward the door and stumbled several steps forward. His head swayed back and forth as he murmured to himself, "I, Xu Yuanxia, can brag about this forever!"