Chapter 2

Chapter 2

The crowd of onlookers now swelled to three layers deep at the center, with newcomers outside still struggling to hear what was happening. Jostled forward by those ahead, they were pushed back in turn, stepping on those at the very periphery. In the midst of this press-and-shove pandemonium, the stallholder seized his bundle of wares, abandoned his stall altogether, and slipped through the mass of people as slippery as an eel. He sent people stumbling and falling over one another amidst a chorus of curses, and with one swift turn around a corner, vanished from sight.

Chen Shu, still at the heart of the crowd, tried to give chase but was abruptly pulled back by a firm grip on her hand. “Aiyah!” she cried out in frustration. “Don’t run away! You yelled at me for ages, and now you flee after only two words from me!”

“Let him run, people like him are hardly worth the trouble,” said the gray-robed man. He offered a smile to the lingering onlookers. “No further entertainment here, good folk. Please disperse.”

Only then did Chen Shu turn back. First, she saw the hands gripping hers: defined knuckles, long and slender yet strong – unmistakably the gray-robed man’s. Then, her gaze lifted to his face – fine, clear features framed by neat eyebrows, bearing an air of detachment. Yet there was a slight curve at the corners of his eyes, hinting at amusement. Perhaps it was this subtle hint of a smile that made her feel a strange sense of connection, as though she knew him from somewhere, though the memory remained stubbornly out of reach.

They looked at each other silently for a moment. Chen Shu was intensely scrutinizing her memory for any trace of recognition when the gray-robed man seemed to snap back to reality. He withdrew his hands swiftly, took half a step back, and averted his gaze.

“You…” Chen Shu began.

“My apologies,” he said. “Necessity in the moment compelled an intrusion.”

Chen Shu blinked, confused. “Why apologize?” she asked forthrightly. “I should be thanking you! Are we certain we haven’t met before?”

This time, the gray-robed man seemed taken aback. He chuckled lightly. “I don’t believe we have, young mistress. Nobly venturing through the martial rivers and lakes, you cultivate immortals and seek the Dao, while I am just a lowly scholar. Why such a question?”

“I find your face kind and familiar, like I’ve seen it before!” Chen Shu explained, her own smile blooming to reveal slight flashes of her canine teeth. “That must be it! You’re a good man, and good men all have kindly faces! May I ask your honorable name, sir?”

“My humble surname… my surname is Yun, Shen is my given name.” Yun Shen.

“Yun Shen, Yun Shen…” Chen Shu murmured softly, as if munching on the name, repeating it twice until it felt comfortable. “Brother Yun!” she declared brightly. “Are you free? Let me treat you to tea! How about it?”

Yun Shen didn’t correct her informality, calling him ‘brother’ so freely.

“Do you have even a coin to your name?”

The question gave Chen Shu pause. She rummaged frantically through her pockets – left, then right – before whipping around, brandishing the jade pendant clutched in her hand, eagerly showing Yun Shen: “No silver coins, but I—”

“No,” Yun Shen cut in, voice flat with a sigh. “Haven’t you stirred up enough trouble with that jade already? Keep it safe.”

“Don’t you look down on it!” Chen Shu protested mildly. “This is a fine piece of jade! Passed down to me by my master himself. He said it’s pristine jade from ancient times. Only after our sect’s founder infused it with an immortal’s breath has it been preserved until today! I only received it after practicing hard for many years, finally achieving mastery of the sword way, and begging persistently from my master!”

As she spoke, she unconsciously leaned closer to Yun Shen, gesturing animatedly with her hands. Yun Shen let out another soft chuckle. One of her gesticulating hands was suddenly captured in his, while the other continued to flutter freely, completely oblivious to how perilously the supposedly irreplaceable jade danced through the air.

“Alright, I believe you,” Yun Shen conceded. Seeing her gestures wouldn’t be stilled, he released her captured hand and tried reasoning instead. “That’s precisely why you shouldn’t casually hand over such a precious pendant to pay some random debt. You mentioned you descended the mountain searching for your sword. What would your master think if you returned having lost both the sword and the jade?”

“This wasn’t losing it!” Chen Shu grinned sunnily. “I was just using it to get drink money! To treat you to tea, as thanks! That’s perfectly reasonable! Even if Master were here, he wouldn’t disapprove!”

Yun Shen shook his head and laughed, “Did you just hand this jade to that stallholder like that?”

“He was bad news, but you’re a good soul,” Chen Shu argued. “It’s different!”

Gazing at her, Yun Shen chuckled again with a shake of his head, then sighed. “Enough! Enough! I’ll see this good deed through. I’ll lend you some silver to tide you over. You can repay me when you return to your sect or come into some money later on.”

As he spoke, he turned and walked first toward a tea shop nearby. The commotion had passed, and the crowd of onlookers dispersed, leaving as they came. The entrance of the little tea shop, already quiet before, was now completely deserted; only the lingering dust drifted slowly downward.

“Wait!”

Chen Shu called out, her big eyes wide open. She stood on the pitted dirt road of Zhanglin Village, looking at Yun Shen’s back ahead.

Listless hawking occasionally drifted from the street. Travelers on horseback passed them by, none showing any sign of stopping to browse or linger. The autumn sun held little warmth and had long softened its hue. Along the path, a faint fragrance of damp earth hung in the air, like a morning mist — hazy yet fresh.

“What is it?” Yun Shen called back to her from a distance.

“You believe me,” Chen Shu stated. Then, brimming with self-satisfied joy, she shouted towards his figure, “You believe me!”

Her enthusiasm arrived swiftly and departed not at all.

They said they were going to taste tea. Seated inside the hollow stillness of the little shop, the only patrons present, Yun Shen sipped his brew slowly, one deliberate mouthful after another. He couldn’t stop Chen Shu, however, who tilted her head back and drained her cup in one gulp, then insisted on seizing the Innkeeper’s teapot to pour herself three more brimming cups before her thirst was truly quenched.

Crucially, even while guzzling tea, her mouth never ceased its work. Between gulps, she chattered incessantly to Yun Shen, pouring out her life story like beans from a sack.

It turned out she was indeed a disciple from Tianyu Mountain.

Tianyu Mountain was one of the many peaks encircling the villages near Zhanglin Village. Amidst the towering, jagged range that embraced these settlements, Tianyu reigned supreme as the highest peak, piercing the clouds yet notorious for its sheer, treacherous slopes and profound remoteness.

Centuries ago, stone signposts had marked the old paths leading up its slopes. Now, reclaimed by encroaching trees and wild grasses, these ancient markers served only as anchors for roots and climbing vines. Should any traveler stumble upon them by mistake, he likely wouldn’t be able to decipher the two characters “Tian Yu” long since eroded smooth by wind and rain.

In the era when those markers were erected, numerous powerful sects and martial factions had littered the land. Fierce conflicts erupted amongst them, shaking the heavens and obscuring the sun and moon. Any practitioner worth their salt inevitably got swept into the strife. Hence, a group of sword-obsessed purists specifically sought out the Tianyu Mountain sanctuary. They secluded themselves there to cultivate the Dao, establishing an ironclad rule forbidding descent from the mountain. A thousand years had passed since then; the world outside had utterly transformed, yet none upon Tianyu ever broke that rule.

Still, times had changed. Tianyu Mountain, sustained only by sheltering the occasional traveler lost in its wilderness and foundlings abandoned on its slopes, gradually waned. By Chen Shu’s generation, a scant four or five senior brothers and sisters remained. Among them, only Chen Shu had been found as an infant and raised there; cherished with unusual indulgence by her seniors who, acutely aware of the world’s dangers, strictly forbade her from descending. Even when her sword was lost, her master’s stance was simple: forge another. She possessed her own sword cultivation and technique; a sword, even a peerless treasure, was ultimately just a tool. Adherents to the sword path shouldn’t become bound to a mere measure of iron.

Logically, Chen Shu understood this. The trouble was, crafting that sword had cost her dearly. She had poured untold time and effort into it, and crucially, she had genuinely drawn out her own heart’s blood to awaken the blade. This was her very first sword, forged from legendary thousand-year refined iron she herself ventured deep into perilous mountains to obtain, tempered day and night with True Yang fire. How could she not cherish it above all else?

Stubbornness wasn’t her nature, yet she clung fiercely to her convictions. Others preached that cultivators pursued only the sword Dao, unshackled by mere tools, lest they become slaves to the object rather than its master. Her own teacher had stressed this repeatedly. Chen Shu would agree outwardly, but inwardly, she protested.

For her, this sword was infinitely more than a simple weapon crafted of iron. Since she had personally forged this blade, she was utterly convinced that throughout her entire life, no other sword would ever suit her as perfectly.

Hearing about half of her tale, Yun Shen set down his tea bowl. He contemplated for a moment before offering, “This is tied to a karmic bond. Young lady, though I am an ordinary mortal, I have delved into some research on these immortal practices and perused obscure mountain lore. There’s one particular written account that relates to your current predicament.”

“Tell me,” Chen Shu urged, locking her gaze on him. “You believe me, Yun brother; I trust you now!”

“…You truly possess a pure and good heart,” Yun Shen remarked with a slight smile. “It is thus: the sword is merely a sword. No matter how sentient it might seem, it remains an inanimate iron weapon. Your deep concern springs not from the sword itself, but from the heart’s blood you employed to awaken it.

“Using blood to awaken iron weapons traces back to ancient sayings. It’s a technique used only in the direst need, approached with utmost caution even by mighty immortals. For that blood—particularly the heart’s blood—contains a being’s primal vital energy. Awakening a blade with it forges a bond akin to signing a binding pact, a pledge sworn in blood. It’s as though fusing yourself permanently with that very sword within the forge’s crucible.

“Any feeling of perfect ease, any heightened love for the blade… such sentiments flow from this Blood Pact, not your own natural heart. True swordsmen treat all creation as their potential weapon. They shouldn’t depend overly on one piece of mortal iron. Few dare employ blood-awakening outside of desperate perils. Young lady, your act happened unwittingly. I could teach you a method to sever this dark pact upon retrieving your sword, restoring your innate freedom and ease.”

“I feel it’s just fine the way it is.”

The hand holding Yun Shen’s teacup paused mid-sip. He looked up at Chen Shu, uncertainty flickering in his eyes. “You mean…?”

“Since the sword was forged, and since it’s the sword I wield, cherishing it is only right,” Chen Shu stated, propping her chin on a hand, meeting Yun Shen’s gaze head-on. “Talk of freedom, ease, or wielding all creation as swords… that’s just empty talk for show. Once you possess one truly fine sword, why would you ever yearn for a second? If this blood pact merely teaches her owner to value the sword dearly, wouldn’t you agree that’s hardly a bad thing?”

“What unusual logic,” Yun Shen replied, unable to suppress a laugh. “But presently, Young lady, this beloved sword you pine for is missing, not in your hand at all. What shall you do then?”

“That’s why I came down the mountain to find it! Following your explanation, Yun brother, it becomes a happy accident. If I hadn’t used my heart’s blood to awaken the sword, hadn’t forged this pact, I’d fear I’d never recognize it amidst the countless swords here below!”

Yun Shen shook his head briefly, abandoning the attempt to reason further. He slowly savored his final sip of tea and redirected the conversation: “So, Young lady, how exactly do you intend to seek that sword within this boundless world?”

“By asking! By searching! My sword flew down from the mountains just yesterday, when skies were clear — surely some kind soul must have witnessed it. A flying sword shouldn’t be that difficult to locate!” Chen Shu retorted, wagging a finger playfully. “Ah, Yun brother, I gather from your look that you’re not local either; merely passing through on your own errands? Ships passing in the night rarely meet again. So, perhaps the best thing is for me to exchange some goods for silver right now, pay for your tea, and leave with my conscience clear.”

“Very well, let us part ways here—” Yun Shen began, then caught himself, frowning as he asked, “What will you use to get money? Don’t tell me you plan to pawn that jade again?”

Chen Shu stuck out her tongue and stood up.

“Don’t trouble yourself with so many worries, you simple man. I’ll pay for your tea when I return!”

“…Hold on!”

Yun Shen’s shout failed to stop Chen Shu. She strode briskly toward the well-lit teahouse entrance, in good spirits and determined to part with some worldly possession to repay this first true benefactor she’d met since descending the mountain. Hearing his call behind her, she not only ignored it but quickened her pace. With uncanny footwork, she moved soundlessly and swiftly to the doorway.

Shortly after, she heard Yun Shen rise from his seat behind her, chairs scraping sharply against the floor. A rare urgency tinged his voice:

“You little… marching off so fast—do you even know the way to the pawnshop?”