bookbashuk Chapter 18: The Undefeated Swordsman!
Chapter 18: The Undefeated Swordsman!
Hengyang City, Huiyan Tower.
It was midday, and the wine flag hung lazily in front of the door. A few people sat scattered in the lobby on the first floor, mostly merchants, talking in hushed tones. In a corner, an old man dressed in shabby clothes played the erhu, seemingly performing for money, but the music was so mournful that it was hard to imagine who would give him a tip.
Upstairs, at a few tables by the window, sat all sorts of wandering figures. A burly man with a full beard had just downed a large bowl of strong liquor, his face flushed red. He slammed his hand on the table, making the bowls and plates clatter loudly.
"Hey guys, have you heard? That grandmaster who reached the pinnacle of swordsmanship, the one who has mastered it to its ultimate level, is known as—the Sword Demon, Dugu Qiubai!"
His voice was loud and clear, full of energy, and several idle men at the next table, who were eating fennel beans, craned their necks.
A wiry, weasel-faced man opposite him flinched, spilling half his drink. He quickly glanced left and right, and seeing no one seemed to care, breathed a sigh of relief, patted his chest lightly, and whispered like a thief:
"My dear brother, please keep your voice down! That title... 'Seeker of Defeat'? I wouldn't even dare to hear it if he dared to use it. Aren't you afraid that the Eastern Leader of the Sun Moon Cult will hear it and send people to his door overnight to embroider flowers on his body?"
The bearded man waved his hand dismissively. "What do you know! This Sword Demon is a figure from the previous dynasty, long before that Eastern Cult Leader! Besides, if they really met, who knows who would be doing the embroidery?"
"Really? I don't believe it." The lean man had a "don't try to fool me" look on his face.
"Don't you believe me!" The bearded man stiffened his neck. "You know Yang Guo, the Condor Hero, right?"
"How could I not know!" The lean man immediately perked up. "Yang Guo, the great hero! Outside Xiangyang, amidst thousands of troops, he beheaded the Mongol Khan Möngke with a single sword stroke. How awe-inspiring! Truly a hero who dominated the world!"
"Hey, good to know!" The bearded man slapped his thigh proudly. "Let me tell you, Master Yang's earth-shattering martial arts skills were learned from Dugu Qiubai! And guess whose pet that giant eagle that taught Master Yang martial arts was? It was none other than the old man Dugu Qiubai!"
Before he could finish speaking, a young man dressed in a blue robe and scholarly attire couldn't help but interject, "Brother, you're mistaken! Master Yang killed Möngke using his flying stone technique, not a sword!"
The bearded man choked for a moment, his old face flushed, and he said stiffly, "Pretty much! Anyway, they all learned from Dugu Qiubai! Besides, not to mention the distant past, just think about the famous Feng Qingyang of the Huashan Sect who was renowned throughout the martial arts world decades ago, you must know him, right? His signature technique, the 'Nine Swords of Dugu,' just from the name, you can tell it was passed down from Dugu Qiubai!"
"No way..." the lean man clicked his tongue in astonishment. "How could it have survived for so many years?"
"Who knows?" the bearded man mumbled.
"It sounds like you made it up. Where did you get that information?" The lean man looked at him suspiciously.
The bearded man chuckled and leaned closer mysteriously: "I wrote this down from a conversation I overheard between the guys at the next table a few days ago."
"Pfft—" The lean man spat out a mouthful of wine, choking and coughing. "Wow! It's chat logs! That's too real, you can't help but believe it, you can't help but believe it!"
The scholar in the blue robe who had approached grew anxious and tapped the table, saying, "Don't you believe it! This rumor contains supreme martial arts principles; how could it be mere fabrication?"
"Oh? Then tell me about it." The lean man wiped his mouth, adopting an attitude of being all ears.
The scholar in the blue robe cleared his throat, put on airs, and said with a swaying head:
Legend has it that before the age of twenty, Dugu Qiubai wielded an invincible sword, contending with the heroes of Hebei. At thirty, he switched to a soft, purple sword, but after accidentally injuring a righteous man, he abandoned it in a deep valley in remorse. Before forty, he wielded a heavy, black iron sword, roaming the world unchallenged. After forty, he reached the realm of "no sword is better than having a sword," where grass, trees, bamboo, and rocks could all become swords! Ultimately, unable to find a worthy opponent, he secluded himself in a deep valley, befriending the Divine Eagle, and buried all the swords he had ever used in his life in a place he called "Sword Tomb"!
The lean man, who had been quite interested, scoffed after hearing this.
"I thought you were going to talk about some profound martial arts principles. Isn't this just like a myth? Why don't you say that Dugu Qiubai's sword energy could traverse thirty thousand miles, and that his sword light could chill nineteen provinces? And that having no sword is better than having a sword, and that grass, trees, bamboo, and rocks can all be swords? Haha."
"You...you blockhead!" The scholar in the blue robe was so angry that his face turned red. "You're not worth talking to! I have to have a go at you. Dugu Qiubai at the age of twenty, wielding a sharp sword, was at the level of Feng Qingyang, attacking where the enemy must defend, striking later but arriving first."
"Old Master Feng has only reached the level of someone who's twenty? You're just bragging!" The lean man scoffed. "According to you, any random Wang Chongyang or Zhang Sanfeng from the previous dynasty could dominate the martial arts world right now? I don't believe it."
The scholar in the green robe ignored his nonsense and continued, "After that, the great hero Yang Guo found the Xuan Tie Heavy Sword in the Sword Tomb, mastered the art of swordsmanship, and comprehended the profound skill of the heavy sword, which is characterized by its lack of sharpness and its seemingly effortless mastery."
This time, the lean man stopped arguing. He glanced at the bearded man who had been silent all along and found him diligently taking notes on the chat history. Seeing this, he stroked the sparse stubble on his chin, a thoughtful look in his eyes: "Hmm... 'A heavy sword has no edge, great skill is without artifice,' that saying does have some merit, some truth to it."
"As for the ultimate goal of 'no sword is better than having a sword,' perhaps only the old man Dugu Qiubai could achieve that," the scholar in the blue robe sighed, quite longingly.
"No," the lean man said after thinking for a moment, "What you just said—sharp sword, heavy sword, no sword—all match up. But what about the soft sword in the middle? How could you have missed it? You couldn't have made a mistake, could you?"
Upon hearing this, the bearded man and the scholar in the blue robe exchanged a glance and both revealed inscrutable smiles.
The bearded man lowered his voice, beckoned to the lean man with his finger, and said mysteriously, "This... is an even bigger secret among secrets. I've heard that decades ago, there was a woman of unparalleled talent who, by sheer chance, obtained the Purple Star Soft Sword that Dugu Qiubai had abandoned in a deep valley! She was not only a sword genius, but also proficient in music and dance, and her skill with the soft sword was absolutely divine and breathtaking!"
The lean man was instantly intrigued; he leaned forward, his eyes wide, and his mouth was practically watering.
"Explain in detail..."
Alas, it was caused by surprise.