Unsheathed

Chapter 608 (2): A Dao Heart Trial on the Go Board

The message was, "You shameless old fart! Go somewhere where there's no one around, then yell at the top of your lungs, 'Not only am I a terrible Go player, I also have no shame and constantly ask for take-backs!'"

Could it be that Zhu Mei was actually right, after all, and that he really did have something loose in his head?

Cui Dongshan picked up the lesser heat coin, and the inscription on it was extremely rare. In fact, there was a very good chance that it was one of a kind. As expected of a wealthy young mistress like Yu Juanfu to be tossing out unique lesser heat coins as if they were nothing more than snowflake coins.

Cui Dongshan's left hand had remained over the final seal this entire time, and he smiled as he asked, "How about we go again, Big Sister Yu? If I win, then you have to pass a message on to Zhou Shenzhi for me, but if I lose, then I'll return this lesser heat coin to you, and you won't have to pass on the aforementioned message to the Yu Clan, either. What do you say?"

After a quick assessment of the situation, Yu Juanfu determined that she was almost sure to win this bet, but her woman's intuition advised her against it.

Thus, she shook her head to refuse the bet being proposed.

Cui Dongshan burst into laughter.

"It looks like your gambling luck has not been great today, but in reality, it's been exceptional. If you want to know why I say this, the answer will be revealed to you very soon; today, as a matter of fact."

"Quit speaking in riddles! What are you trying to say?!" Yu Juanfu snapped.

Cui Dongshan picked up the final hidden seal with his left hand, then tossed it at Yu Juanfu and said, "You can have this as a token of apology on behalf of my teacher."

Yu Juanfu caught the seal, and a stunned look instantly appeared on her face at the sight of the inscription that it bore.

"This... This is impossible! This seal has already been purchased by an unknown sword immortal, and even Sword Immortal Sun Juyuan wasn't able to find out the identity of its buyer! How could you possibly know about this when the seal was purchased before you even arrived on the Sword Qi Great Wall?"

Cui Dongshan put on a mysterious expression and mused, "Sometimes, a little luck is required to push you over the line at the gambling table."

Cui Dongshan packed up all of the other items that Yu Juanfu had displayed no interest in, then stood up and said, "It's been really fun, Big Sister Yu."

Yu Juanfu remained seated as she looked up at Cui Dongshan and asked, "Who are you, Senior?"

Only now had she come to realize that she was dealing with someone completely unfathomable to her.

"I'm Dongshan," Cui Dongshan replied with a smile, then departed without another word.

However, he had only just taken a few steps when he abruptly stopped in his tracks, then turned back with a smile and advised, "Don't toss coins in front of others to help you make decisions in the future. The only reason you believe this is a random event that's entirely down to luck is that you're lacking in cultivation base. In reality, the outcome of the coin toss was entirely at my mercy.

"The consequences aren't that severe today, but you may not always be so lucky. Today, you're still Yu Juanfu, the traveling martial artist, but in the future, you're going to be Yu Juanfu of the Yu Clan, so I suggest you take more care in everything that you say and do."

Yu Juanfu silently looked down at the seal in her hand and the concise inscription that it bore: "The goose crashes into the wall."

Yu Juanfu looked up again, only to see Cui Dongshan walking along atop the city wall while demonstrating a series of fist techniques that could only be described as utterly unsightly.

Sword Immortal Ku Xia was instructing the children from the Shaoyuan Empire.

According to the rules of the Sword Qi Great Wall, there were no rules atop the city walls, and if one wanted to establish rules, then they would have to let their sword do the talking.

Sword Immortal Ku Xia was an outsider as far as the Sword Qi Great Wall was concerned. His swordsmanship was exceptional, but he had a very mild personality, so he wasn't bothered by the white-robed young boy who had appeared on the scene to observe him and the young prodigies from the Shaoyuan Empire from afar. The boy only watched them briefly before settling down to read a book.

Ku Xia glanced at the book's cover and saw that its title was "Exultation Pavilion Manual." It was a very popular Go manual on the Middle Earth Divine Continent, particularly in the Shaoyuan Empire, dedicated solely to life-and-death problems.

Ku Xia could tell that the boy's cultivation base was nothing to be scoffed at. The fact that he was unable to determine the boy's cultivation base at a glance indicated that he was at least at the Golden Core Tier or the Nascent Tier.

Cui Dongshan sat by himself as he read through the Go manual, and he had even pulled out two jars of Go stones and a Go board to play out the positions in the manual.

During a break, all of the young swordsmen made sure to keep their distance from him, not because they were afraid of him or Chen Ping'an, but because they were afraid of Chen Ping'an's senior brother.

All of them had made an unspoken agreement not to bring up Zuo You's recent feat while on the city walls, but they had spoken about the matter extensively in private in the Sun Manor.

"All Sword Immortal Yue Qing did was make some remarks on the state of the Scholarly Sage's branch, and Zuo You saw that as just reason to kill him? He thinks he can do whatever he wants just because he's a superior swordsman!"

"Sword Immortal Yue Qing has made so many significant contributions on the Sword Qi Great Wall and slain countless demons, while Zuo You has only taken part in a single war! If he really had killed Yue Qing during their encounter, then the Savage World would have to give him a golden plaque as a gesture of gratitude!"

"I can't believe he went to such extremes over something so trivial! What exactly did Sword Immortal Yue Qing say that was wrong? It's an objective fact that the Scholarly Sage's branch is dying out, and it's all their fault! Thank heavens the Scholarly Sage's works have been banned!

"Otherwise, if his teachings become widely adopted in the Majestic World, then there will be nothing but chaos for everyone! It's a good thing that the old great sword immortal was here to stop him. If he had decided to throw this tantrum in the Majestic World instead, who knows what would've happened?"

However, while all the young prodigies were eagerly voicing their grievances, Ku Xia sat beside Sun Juyuan with a sullen expression.

Sun Juyuan was sitting in the walkway, and he smiled and asked, "Ku Xia, do you think they genuinely think this, or they're just intentionally playing dumb and spouting nonsense?"

Ku Xia didn't give an answer because neither option was very appealing.

Sun Juyuan seemed to have been even more resigned than Ku Xia, and he didn't even bother to get angry.

Instead, he merely smiled and scoffed, "What a bunch of ignorant and noisy fools."

Ku Xia heaved an internal sigh of relief.

At the very least, they hadn't been kicked out of the Sun Manor.

However, what Sun Juyuan said next had Ku Xia feeling rather embarrassed: "In the Majestic World, you can say whatever you want, but you can't just put anything into your mouth. Over here, it's the exact opposite. You can eat whatever you please, but you must be careful with your words. That's all I'm going to say. If anything happens because they were running their mouths too much, don't come to me for help.

"I am but a mere Unpolished Jade Tier swordsman, so I won't even be a capable meat shield, and I'm certainly not going to die for no good reason. Aren't those little brats supposed to be a well-educated bunch? I understand that no matter what delicacies you eat, it'll ultimately come out as shit, but how come all of the principles that they've absorbed from books have also turned to shit?

"Even if they can't smell how terrible their own mouth stinks, surely they can smell the stench from others. Let me make this clear: they've already completely ruined the reputation of my Sun Manor, so they can say this stuff within these walls, but if they go spouting this nonsense outside, then even if they get themselves killed, I'm not going to do anything about it. After all, our Sword Qi Great Wall is just a rural village full of uneducated savages, and we're often prone to excessive violence."

Ku Xia could still recall the cold look in Sun Juyuan's eyes as he spoke.

As soon as Ku Xia announced an hour-long break for everyone, Zhu Mei immediately went to search for Yu Juanfu. She had to tell Yu Juanfu that Cui Dongshan was here, and it was clear that he was looking for trouble.

Jin Zhenmeng was still sitting on a cushion alone in a corner, quietly searching for the sword intent hidden within the pervasive sword qi, while Lin Junbi was seated on another cushion, answering some cultivation questions posed to him by his peers.

Yan Lü was the only one to approach Cui Dongshan, and he took a glance at the position on the Go board, then smiled and remarked, "I see that you're going through the life and death problems in the Exultation Pavilion Manual."

Cui Dongshan took a glance at Yan Lü, but didn't bother to acknowledge him before returning his attention to the Go manual.

"Are you here because you want someone to play against?" Yan Lü asked with a smile. "Could it be that you want Junbi to instruct you? If that's the case, then I advise you to give up on the idea. Junbi isn't going to come over here."

Cui Dongshan didn't even bother to raise his head as he scoffed, "Jiang Guancheng, if you're trying to suck up to me to get my senior uncle, then I suggest you piss off!"

Jiang Guancheng? Yan Lü chuckled with amusement.

"What do you want?" Cui Dongshan asked as he raised his head. "Do you want to clash against me on the Go board as a follower of the Second Sage's branch?"

"You have the wrong person," Yan Lü replied with a composed smile. "I may not be a follower of the Second Sage's branch, but I still abide by his sagely teachings and know to refrain from engaging in pointless conflicts. Principles are only found in books and our hearts, never on swords and fists, and certainly not on Go boards."

"I have the wrong person?" Cui Dongshan asked with a puzzled expression. "Ah, you must be Yan Lü then. Speaking of him, to this day, I still have no clue how a clan of idiots like the Jiang Clan managed to produce two noble scholars."

"I suggest you be careful with your words!" Yan Lü said with a stern expression.

Cui Dongshan took a side-eyed glance at Yan Lü as he scoffed, "You make it sound like you care so much about Jiang Guancheng, but in reality, he could drop dead in front of you right now, and you wouldn't even bat an eyelid. You wanna defend the Jiang Clan's honor? Fine. In that case, I'll talk about your clan instead. Let's start off with the patriarch of your clan, the pathetic suck-up that is Yan Xi.

"He never receives an invitation to the Azure Mountain God Banquet, and yet he still shamelessly goes every single time. Isn't he renowned across the entire Middle Earth Divine Continent for being a sycophantic lapdog? Even though he only ever gets to sit at the very end of the table and is always ignored by everyone, he goes out of his way to propose toasts and try to make himself relevant.

"As soon as he leaves the Bamboo Sea Small World, he immediately tells anyone who would listen about how he was invited to drink with the Azure Mountain God. Thank heavens someone got sick of his act and revealed the truth to everyone. Otherwise, everyone would still be completely in the dark and think that he's actually on good terms with the Azure Mountain God!"

A furious look appeared on Yan Lü's face.

"You're getting angry over some mere words? Some scholar you are," Cui Dongshan scoffed. "I can see that you intend to kill me, and you've somehow convinced yourself that you would be fully justified in doing so and could kill me without having it weigh on your conscience at all. How have you managed to accomplish that? Are you not afraid that my senior uncle will dice you up into mincemeat?

"Are you only holding back because you can't see through my cultivation base, and you're a worthless coward, so you're consoling yourself by turning to adages like 'revenge is a dish best served cold'? Wouldn't that make you the same kind of person as my senior uncle? Actually, no, that's not an accurate comparison.

"At the very least, my senior uncle has the courage and power to lash out at those he resents, whereas you are too weak, pathetic, and afraid, so you desperately try to justify your inaction by proclaiming yourself to be a morally upright pacifist. I suppose it doesn't really come as a surprise, considering you've been taught by an old dog like Yan Xi."

Yan Lü was gritting his teeth, and his hands had balled up into tight fists, yet he was still keeping up appearances by maintaining a forced smile.

"Isn't this how all of you talk about others behind their backs?" Cui Dongshan asked with a bright smile. "While it's often frowned upon to do this, I have to admit that it feels good to vent like this from time to time. Get out of here now; hurry back home so you can lick Yan Xi's old arse. He's such a lofty immortal that even the shit that comes out of his arse would be enough to feed you.

"Why did you even come to the Sword Qi Great Wall? Just so you can be embarrassed by Lin Junbi? Are you not aware that you're a talentless piece of scum? You really should know your place."

Right as Yan Lü was about to summon his flying sword, Lin Junbi rose to his feet and said, "That's enough, Cui Dongshan. If you want me to play with you, then I'll gladly oblige. There's no point in instigating these wars of words."

Cui Dongshan pinched his nose as he hurriedly beckoned to Lin Junbi and said, "Come and take a seat, Young Master Lin. This dog keeps barking at me and making this whole place smell like piss! Hurry up and put him on a leash already!"

Yan Lü still intended to lash out at Cui Dongshan, but Ku Xia delivered a warning to him through his mind's lake.

"Zuo You won't draw his sword for himself, but he'll do so for the honor of the Scholarly Sage's branch, and he doesn't care who you are or what your cultivation base is."

Yan Lü's complexion paled slightly, and he departed without a word.

As he passed Lin Junbi by, the latter patted him on the shoulder, then reassured him with a smile, "Don't worry, I'll get him back for you. My swordsmanship isn't anything special, but I'm a decent Go player."

Yan Lü nodded firmly in response.

Lin Junbi sat down across from Cui Dongshan on the other side of the Go board.

Cui Dongshan rubbed his hands together with a look of amazement on his face as he praised, "Never have I seen such ethereal grace in anyone aside from your esteemed self, Young Master Lin. How are you able to carry yourself with such natural elegance? You must've been born with the disposition of an immortal!"

"I already told you that there's no point in instigating a war of words," Lin Junbi said with a smile. "If you want to play, then let's play. If you're going to keep this up, then I'll have to refuse to play with you."

"What do you wanna bet?" Cui Dongshan asked.

"Nothing," Lin Junbi replied with a shake of his head. "There will be nothing at stake aside from the outcome of the game."

"What's the point in playing without something on the line? I'm here to make money," Cui Dongshan objected.

He then turned to Yu Juanfu's direction and began waving vigorously at her as he yelled, "Over here, Big Sister Yu! I'm about to play Go against Young Master Lin! Watch how I beat him!"

Lin Junbi also turned to Yu Juanfu and flashed her a resigned smile.

Yu Juanfu displayed no reaction, while Zhu Mei was barely able to contain her amusement.

"I knew it! He really is an idiot!"

Of course, Yu Juanfu knew better than to think that.

Sure enough, Cui Dongshan had predicted that Zhu Mei would bring her here, and her arrival was sure to light a competitive flame in someone like Lin Junbi. Perhaps this wouldn't have a significant impact, but for a cultivator, even the slightest change in one's mental state was not something to be ignored.

All of this was still within Cui Dongshan's calculations.

Rather than approaching the two Go players, Yu Juanfu sat where she was and began to dine on flatbread, washed down with water. Zhu Mei wanted to get in on the fun, but Yu Juanfu made her stay behind to keep her company.

"If only Big Sister Yu would take one more look at me." Cui Dongshan sighed with a wistful expression. "If she would spare me even just one more glance, I'm sure my Go skills would be significantly enhanced."

Lin Junbi remained silent.

"Let's start off small and bet a single copper coin," Cui Dongshan proposed.

"A copper coin?" Lin Junbi asked as he raised an eyebrow.

"What do you suggest? A snowflake coin instead? You really are a wealthy man, Young Master Lin," Cui Dongshan mused.

"Where am I supposed to find a copper coin for you?" Lin Junbi chuckled. "You know what? Now that I think about it, I like this bet. Winning a copper coin will be even more memorable than if I were to win a grain rain coin, so everyone will be sure to remember this for a long time to come."

"How did you manage to guess my intentions when I've hidden them so well?!" Cui Dongshan exclaimed with a stunned expression. "At this rate, I'm going to bid farewell to the copper coin in my pocket!"

Lin Junbi had to admit that even he couldn't help but feel disgusted by the man sitting before him. Of course, he was still in a much more enviable position than Yan Lü, who had just been completely and utterly humiliated.

The insults delivered by Cui Dongshan were undoubtedly going to make the rounds in the Shaoyuan Empire, and it was very difficult to say whether Yan Lü would be able to make any cultivation gains on the Sword Qi Great Wall going forward.

For a cultivator, a thorn in one's mental state could prove to be very detrimental, and at the very least, the humiliation inflicted upon him by Cui Dongshan was going to reduce the cultivation gains that he should've made on the Sword Qi Great Wall.