Novel Full Chapter 125 - 124: Sword Intent! Leaving
Chapter 125: Chapter 124: Sword Intent! Leaving
“Upgrade the Life-taking Thirteen Swords,” Xu Qing commanded.
HUM!
With a flicker of his will,
the Encyclopedia of All Things began to glow.
Countless sword phantoms surged.
Xu Qing’s consciousness felt as if it were pulled into a mystical space once again. This time, however, he wasn’t just practicing and cultivating his Swordsmanship. He was delving into each and every move to comprehend an even more exquisite and profound Sword Intent.
CLANG!
Finally,
with the ring of a sword,
all the Swordsmanship techniques fused, condensing into a single longsword. This sword, forged from Sword Intent, transformed into a Visualization Image.
[Upgrade Successful!]
[Life-taking Thirteen Swords LV11: 12020/30720 (Evolved from Swordsmanship. The sword techniques are exquisitely profound. Upon complete mastery, one can condense First Level Sword Intent.)]
SWOOSH!!!
Sword Qi lashed out.
The True Qi around Xu Qing transformed into Sword Qi, crisscrossing all around him. Countless streams of light flickered from his Level 17 Iron Sword, his Level 13 Wandering Dragon Sword, and his Level 12 Copper Coin Sword.
At that moment,
the three swords let out a ringing cry, celebrating Xu Qing’s mastery of Sword Intent.
“Hahaha…”
Xu Qing laughed heartily, his spirits soaring.
SWISH! SWISH! SWISH!
The Level 17 Iron Sword, the Level 13 Wandering Dragon Sword, and the Level 12 Copper Coin Sword danced around Xu Qing like three wandering dragons, as if he were using a Sword Control Technique.
That afternoon, outside Qingfeng Town.
At this time,
Elder Yan was already driving a carriage. While the carriage didn’t look luxurious, it was very sturdy. Even the horse pulling it was no ordinary steed, but a type of Exotic Beast Horse. Because its body was covered in scales and a single horn grew from its forehead, it was called the Unicorn Scale Horse.
“Xu Qing, are you sure you’re leaving?”
Yin Shanhe asked.
“Yes.”
Xu Qing smiled. “I have to leave sooner or later.”
“Mm.”
Yin Shanhe nodded.
“Xu Qing, where are you going now that you’re leaving Qingfeng Town?”
Duan Wanyu asked.
“Moon River Prefecture City.”
Xu Qing replied.
“Moon River Prefecture City.”
Duan Wanyu mused, “If that’s the case, when you get to Moon River Prefecture City, you can go to the Luohua Martial Arts Hall and look for my daughter. If you run into any trouble, my daughter, Duan Yu, should be able to help you out a bit.”
“Alright, thank you, Lord Duan.”
Xu Qing cupped his hands.
“Master…”
Yu Hu was reluctant to see him go.
“Mm.”
Xu Qing just nodded lightly.
“I should be going.”
Xu Qing looked at the familiar faces one by one. A ripple of emotion passed through him, but without much hesitation, he stepped onto the carriage.
“Elder Yan, let’s go,”
Xu Qing said.
“Yes, Young Master,”
Elder Yan replied.
“Hyah!”
With a soft cry,
Elder Yan drove the carriage onto the wide official road, gradually disappearing from everyone’s sight. Yin Shanhe and the others watched until Xu Qing was gone.
Time flew by. By evening,
Xu Qing had arrived in Qingbei Town. He didn’t head directly for Moon River Prefecture City, but instead went to White Dwarf Mountain outside of town. The carriage stopped at the foot of the mountain.
“Young Master,”
Elder Yan asked, “Why have you come here?”
“Because my grandfather is laid to rest at the summit of this mountain,”
Xu Qing said.
“I see,”
Elder Yan remarked.
“You wait here at the foot of the mountain,”
Xu Qing said.
“Yes, Young Master.”
Elder Yan nodded respectfully.
Under the crimson evening sky, Xu Qing disembarked from the carriage. He walked up the muddy mountain path, slowly making his way to the summit.
HUU…
Xu Qing took a deep breath. He gazed at the dilapidated Mountain God Temple as memories of his grandfather flooded his mind, and he was lost in reminiscence.
“Hm?”
Xu Qing arrived at his grandfather’s grave, only to see a graceful figure standing before the tombstone. Just the sight of her back gave Xu Qing a feeling of familiarity.
“Xu Qing!”
The graceful figure in front of the tombstone heard the noise behind her and turned around. He could only see that she wore a Faceless Mask, her entire body covered in long sleeves and pants. Her tone was one of shock as she called out Xu Qing’s name.
“Senior Sister?”
Xu Qing was also slightly stunned. He had, of course, recognized her. “What are you doing here?”
“Well…”
Du Luan fell silent for a moment before quickly explaining, “After you left, Junior Brother, we slowly looked into your background and learned that you had a grandfather.”
“Also,”
“your grandfather was actually quite famous among the refugees and beggars. Even though it’s been almost a year, we were still able to find out some things and learned that you buried your grandfather here.”
“I’m your Senior Sister, so I came to pay my respects on your behalf.”
“Thank you,”
Xu Qing said.
“Don’t mention it,”
Du Luan said.
As they spoke,
Xu Qing walked up to his grandfather’s tombstone. Looking at the raised mound and the weeds around it, he bent down and started clearing them away for his grandfather.
“Senior Sister, could you leave me alone with my grandfather for a moment?”
Xu Qing asked.
“Alright.”
Du Luan nodded, turned, and left, heading back down the mountain.
Before the grave,
“Grandpa,”
Xu Qing gazed at the tombstone, a hint of sorrow in his eyes, but he quickly recovered. “You know, Grandpa? I actually miss the old days. I miss that time, even though we were just beggars and I hadn’t even awakened the memories of my past life. But back then, I had you by my side.”
“Now…”
“I don’t have a single relative left. I’m all alone in this world, because I was never really a person of this world to begin with.”
“But you don’t have to worry. Even though I’m lonely, I have my own path to walk. This world is amazing, truly amazing. Compared to my previous world, you could say it’s a million times more exciting.”
“I have to go now.”
Xu Qing sighed softly. “I might not be able to come see you for a long, long, long time. I’m going to Moon River Prefecture City. I still remember you saying back then that when times got better, you wanted to take me there.”
“Now, I’m capable enough to go on my own.”
“I’m sure you must be very pleased.”
“…”
Before he knew it,
Xu Qing had been talking for a long, long time. It was as if he had an endless stream of words he wanted to share with his grandfather, but as time passed, night began to fall.
“Grandpa, I’m leaving.”
Finally,
Xu Qing took a deep breath, looked at the tombstone, and waved. “I was originally thinking of getting you a new coffin made of Golden Rattan Wood and rebuilding your grave.”
“But on second thought, I decided against it.”
“I remember you saying that you liked peace and quiet, and didn’t like to be disturbed. I’m sure you wouldn’t want your remains to be dug up again, and honestly, I don’t want to disturb you either.”
“Grandpa, I’m leaving,”
Xu Qing said one last time.
He turned and walked away.
It was as if,
before the tombstone,
an illusory figure had appeared. It was Nine Fingers, his hair white as snow, his face weathered by hardship, but his eyes full of affection. It seemed he raised his right hand at that moment, waving to Xu Qing and watching him depart.
At the foot of the mountain,
in front of the carriage,
Xu Qing saw Senior Sister Du Luan. She was waiting for him.
“Senior Sister,”
Xu Qing called out.
“Junior Brother,”
Du Luan replied.
“Senior Sister, I’m about to leave for Moon River Prefecture City. If you have time, could I trouble you to look after my grandfather’s grave?”
Xu Qing requested.
“Junior Brother,”
Du Luan said, “I won’t be staying in Qingbei Town for too long. I’ll probably leave in a month or two. But don’t worry, my father and the others will help look after it for you.”
“Thank you.”
Xu Qing cupped his hands again.
“It’s what I should do,”
Du Luan said.
After exchanging a few more words,
Xu Qing boarded the carriage.
“It’s getting late. Aren’t you going to rest in town before you leave?”
Du Luan asked. “Traveling in the wilderness at night is very dangerous.”
“No need,”
Xu Qing shook his head and said with a smile.
“Mm.”
Du Luan nodded. “Junior Brother, be careful on the road.”
“Thank you, Senior Sister,”
Xu Qing said.
The two bid each other farewell.
“Hyah!”
Elder Yan cracked the whip. The Unicorn Scale Horse let out a neigh and started down the official road. Du Luan watched Xu Qing leave until he disappeared from sight.
Time passed.
Deep night gradually fell.
At night,
Xu Qing felt the atmosphere around him change abruptly. Even though he was on the official road, it felt as if countless eyes were spying on him.
Fortunately,
before it got too late,
Xu Qing arrived at an inn. The inn was packed with people. Furthermore, being an inn on the official road, it was naturally protected by the National Fortune’s Dragon Qi of the Great Zhou Martial Country. Ordinary Demon Fiends and evil spirits wouldn’t dare act recklessly here.
In any case,
the Great Zhou Martial Country had not yet fallen.
“Welcome, sirs.”
An attendant came over.
Xu Qing glanced at the attendant and the other guests in the inn. He hadn’t said a word since getting out of the carriage, letting Elder Yan handle the arrangements. “Two premium rooms. Also, you’ll need to make arrangements for the Unicorn Scale Horse. We have a long journey ahead of us tomorrow.”
“Right away.”
The attendant was all smiles. “Don’t you worry, sirs.”
Subsequently,
the attendant led Xu Qing and Elder Yan to the premium rooms. After Xu Qing and Elder Yan entered the inn, the previously noisy crowd fell silent.
The reason was simple.
Elder Yan exuded an extremely powerful aura. It was the kind of spiritual pressure and suppression that came from someone at the Immortal level.
Everyone looked on with reverence and fear.
“Th-this…”
“Who are they?”
“I… I don’t know…”
“*Hiss…*”
“You all felt that, right? That powerful aura and pressure. That old man is definitely an Immortal-level expert! And for someone to have an Immortal-level expert as a servant… my god, I can hardly believe it.”
“I think that young man might be a scion from one of the great families in Moon River Prefecture City.”
“That’s right, that’s right.”
“We absolutely can’t afford to offend them.”
“…”
The crowd murmured amongst themselves.
In his room,
Xu Qing settled in. Elder Yan was resting in another, and the inn staff had naturally taken care of feeding and stabling the Unicorn Scale Horse, so Xu Qing didn’t need to worry.
’Devouring Demon Technique First Layer.’
HUM! HUM! HUM!
At his will, Xu Qing put on the Evil Ghost Mask for the night and entered a state of Meditation. He began to sit and cultivate, practicing the Demon Technique in place of sleep and rest.
「The night passed without incident.」
The next day,
in the morning,
Xu Qing woke up early, but Elder Yan had risen even earlier. He had already prepared the carriage and checked out of their rooms, waiting only for Xu Qing’s order to depart.
“Young Master,”
Elder Yan said respectfully.
“Mm.”
Xu Qing had eaten a piece of Level 4 Spiritual Food that morning. His Essence, Qi, and Spirit were abundant. He boarded the carriage. “Let’s go.”
“Yes,”
Elder Yan replied.
“Hyah!”
With a soft cry,
the carriage moved forward once more.
Before he knew it,
「Two days later.」
Xu Qing finally entered the territory of Moon River Prefecture City.
Along the way,
Xu Qing hadn’t encountered any major incidents. He had only seen numerous scattered bones on the road, as well as many common people lying on the ground, waiting to die.
The world was truly a cold and indifferent place.