Chapter 32: Let Me Be in Peace

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After secretly sighing for a moment, Qiu Tianhe said coldly,

“Raise this saber’s status by half a notch? You?”

When Ye Jingtang had written Zhe Yunli’s name, his meaning had been simple: There’s a foolish girl dragging her martial mother to the capital to die. Old sir, stop being stubborn and hurry up and teach me the saber technique so we can leave. He had never imagined that Qiu Tianhe would spin such an elaborate interpretation from it.

Still, although their thoughts had been worlds apart, they had reached an agreement.

Seeing Qiu Tianhe relent, Ye Jingtang declared with soaring confidence, “On the strength of me.”

Qiu Tianhe no longer bothered with such empty formalities. With a cold snort, he slowly hauled himself upright and lifted the chains.

“Bring me the saber.”

As he spoke, he looked up toward the mouth of the well.

Shang Jianli knew the rules and, without attempting to learn by stealth, withdrew from the cellar.

Clang—

Ye Jingtang flicked his finger, sending the Chi Dragon Ring-Pommel Saber flying forward. Qiu Tianhe caught it steadily.

Qiu Tianhe had practiced the saber all his life, yet it had been nearly a year since he had last touched one. The moment his hand closed around the hilt, a trace of nostalgia welled in his eyes, and his entire bearing changed. It was as though an old man with one foot in the grave had instantly transformed into an unyielding pine standing between heaven and earth.

Clatter, clatter…

Amid the sway of the iron chains, Qiu Tianhe’s feet shifted lightly. His body followed the saber, his movements smooth as flowing clouds and water, neither hurried nor slow.

Even in his extreme weakness, the profound foundation contained within every step and motion was plain to see.

Clatter, clatter…

Qiu Tianhe’s saber technique was extraordinarily intricate. Even a single movement involved countless postures, as though every joint in his body were in motion.

When he finished demonstrating, Qiu Tianhe tossed the saber to Ye Jingtang and said in a voice laden with age,

“This saber is called Heavenly Unity. Its name is drawn from the meaning of ‘the unity of heaven and man.’ Its saber intent is completely opposite to that of Eight-Step Mad Saber and the Dragon-Slaying Edict. It emphasizes artistic conception rather than fixed forms, and follows the principle of ‘letting nature take its course.’ Once mastered, its forceful moments are like a raging river surging across the wilderness, while its gentle moments are like a butterfly flitting through flowers… a butter—”

His impassioned voice gradually faded, then fell silent.

Qiu Tianhe had assumed the bearing of an otherworldly master instructing a junior, but the junior before him had not listened to a single word. He had merely taken the saber and begun imitating the movements he had just demonstrated.

At first, Qiu Tianhe had thought Ye Jingtang a hopeless case—too eager for quick success, copying movements before he had even understood saber intent. The more faithfully he imitated the forms, the further astray he would go. Heavenly Unity Saber had no fixed techniques at all. It was entirely a matter of artistic conception.

Yet before long, the displeasure on Qiu Tianhe’s face transformed into bewilderment.

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After practicing twice, Ye Jingtang discovered that something was wrong with the saber technique Qiu Tianhe had taught him. The circulation of energy was erratic; at first glance, every route seemed correct, but on closer examination, every one of them was a crooked path.

Ye Jingtang did not become fixated on this strange sensation. He trusted his own judgment more. If the instruction was wrong, he would not follow it mechanically. Instead, he carefully sensed how the saber ought to be wielded and allowed his saber instinct to guide him.

“Inhale… exhale…”

The stone chamber was utterly silent. Holding the saber in one hand, Ye Jingtang slowly repeated Qiu Tianhe’s movements, each attempt slightly different from the last.

A look of astonishment appeared in Qiu Tianhe’s eyes. He had not expected Ye Jingtang to possess such remarkable insight. Without needing any explanation, he had found his way through the threshold and begun to sense the hidden mysteries concealed between the forms.

Heavenly Unity Saber was not the most powerful saber art in the world, but it was the most difficult to learn.

That was because Heavenly Unity Saber placed few demands on a martial artist’s physical attributes. Techniques such as the Dragon-Slaying Edict and Eight-Step Mad Saber, by contrast, were beyond the ability of women and even physically frail men to master.

Heavenly Unity Saber had a broader range of practitioners and no inferior power. Its price was naturally an exceptionally high barrier to entry. It tested a martial artist’s insight and even possessed something of a mystical quality. A dull-witted person might practice for an entire lifetime without ever truly entering its halls.

In Qiu Tianhe’s eyes, Ye Jingtang had grasped the key so quickly that mastering the basics was only a matter of time—three months at most…

Before Qiu Tianhe could finish the thought, the scene before him left him stunned.

Ye Jingtang held the saber in one hand. After practicing more than ten times, he suddenly stopped and became utterly motionless.

The flame of the oil lamp on the wall stood perfectly straight, and the saber in Ye Jingtang’s hand was as still as a solitary lamp.

When the aftershock of his breathing and movements caused the flame to tremble faintly, the saber in his hand trembled with it.

Qiu Tianhe’s expression turned incredulous. After a brief silence, he gave his wrist a slight shake.

Clatter—

An earsplitting metallic scraping rang through the dungeon.

Though the Soft-Bone Incense had reduced his martial power to less than a tenth of its former strength, Qiu Tianhe merely raised his right hand slightly. The heavy iron chain fastened around his wrist instantly drew taut, transforming into a steel whip that lashed toward Ye Jingtang.

Yet before Qiu Tianhe could strike, Ye Jingtang had already moved.

Swish—

A flash of saber light streaked through the dungeon. The gust raised by the blade instantly extinguished the dying candle on the wall.

The moment the iron chain in Qiu Tianhe’s hand began to rise, a streak of silver pierced through its center, locking the chain before it could draw taut. The saber tip stopped precisely at the point where force gathered in his elbow, piercing the prison robe with perfect control while leaving the flesh beneath entirely unharmed.

Clatter—

With its momentum gone, the chain fell to the floor once more. The noise abruptly ceased, and the chamber sank into darkness.

Scrape—

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Ye Jingtang slowly returned the saber to its scabbard, then took a tinder tube from his waist and walked toward the oil lamp.

“What a marvelous saber art,” he praised. “If the enemy does not move, I do not move. If the enemy moves, I move first. By sensing the slightest changes in one’s opponent and dismantling the attack before countering, one is always a step ahead. The predecessor who created this saber art must have been a wondrous genius, an extraordinary person with ordinary physical gifts but insight unparalleled throughout the ages…”

There was not the slightest response from within the stone chamber.

Qiu Tianhe stared at him with an expression of utter disbelief. Only after a moment did he ask,

“How do you know Heavenly Unity Saber?”

“Hm?”

Ye Jingtang lit the oil lamp with the tinder tube and turned around. He found Qiu Tianhe staring blankly at him and blinked.

“Didn’t Hero Qiu just teach it to me?”

“Your old master just taught—”

Qiu Tianhe nearly repeated the same words Luo Ning had once said. But after witnessing Ye Jingtang’s Eight-Step Mad Saber on their previous encounter, he already held him in high regard. He ultimately managed to recover, gave a slight nod, and waved his right hand.

“Leave. Let this old man have some peace.”

“Could I have misunderstood?”

“You did not. A master leads one through the door; cultivation depends on the individual. Go back and practice on your own. And from now on, do not disturb this old man’s secluded cultivation unless absolutely necessary.”

“Is that truly all there is to Heavenly Unity Saber?”

“Heavenly Unity Saber seeks artistic conception. It is an internal martial art. Put simply, it is ‘a saber strike launched from the backhand,’ but it changes in a thousand ways and has no fixed form. And the older it becomes, the more formidable it grows. You have glimpsed only the tip of the iceberg. Do not underestimate this saber art. Once you have practiced it for long enough, you will understand where its dominance lies.”

Ye Jingtang felt that Heavenly Unity Saber was indeed profound. Though it did not seem as powerful at first glance as the saber arts his foster father had taught him, the mysteries within it were several orders of magnitude deeper, and its potential was immense. He would have to devote himself to studying and comprehending it.

With that thought, Ye Jingtang cupped his hands in salute.

“Many thanks for your generous instruction, Hero Qiu. If I encounter anything I do not understand, I hope you will continue to offer your guidance. I shall take my leave for now.”

“Alas…”

Qiu Tianhe wanted nothing more than to say, “It would be enough if you stopped coming here to instruct me, and you still expect me to instruct you?”

But the words were far too damaging to a grandmaster’s dignity. In the end, he swallowed them and merely leaned against the wall, retreating into silent despair…