Back in the day, the world’s number one Sword God compiled his life’s ultimate skills into a sword manual passed down through generations. However, four moves were never recorded in it. As the Sword God vanished without a trace, those four moves were completely lost to time.
Cloud Swallow Skimming the Waves was one of them.
When Wen Lisheng was young, she greatly admired this Sword God. So, even though it was only her second day learning the sword, she created her own move and named it “Cloud Swallow Skimming the Waves,” swearing confidently that she would one day master it into an ultimate technique.
Years passed, and Wen Lisheng’s sword skills showed little improvement, but her talent for boasting grew with each passing day.
Wen Lisheng chased Shen Jiaqing for over a hundred steps before Qi Gong finally stopped her.
It was nearly noon, and the sun grew increasingly scorching. Just standing under its rays made Wen Lisheng feel unbearably restless.
Shen Jiaqing wore a white tunic that day. He stood solemnly in a sparsely populated clearing, holding his sword, with the footprints on his thigh and waist glaringly obvious, making him stand out awkwardly.
Wen Lisheng shot him a sidelong glare, her anger not diminishing in the slightest.
Shen Jiaqing suddenly glanced at her, then flipped the sword in his arms to his left hand. In the blink of an eye, he twirled it gracefully behind his back, transferring it to his right hand—a series of movements executed with remarkable agility.
After finishing, he raised an eyebrow at Wen Lisheng, looking quite pleased with himself.
This was precisely the little trick he had just learned from Xi Lu.
Wen Lisheng’s fury ignited instantly. She cursed loudly, “Ungrateful scoundrel, hand over your miserable life!”
She lunged forward, raising her fist to strike him. Shen Jiaqing, startled, hastily blocked with his arms to protect his head.
Seeing the two at it again, Qi Gong hurried over and, with the help of other students, separated the noisy pair, placing them far apart.
Wen Lisheng, still fuming, naturally wanted nothing to do with Shen Jiaqing. She stood alone under the shade of a tree, feeling unbearably hot and irritable.
She raised her hand, using it as a fan to cool herself. On her wrist, she wore an extremely delicate gold filigree bracelet, from which dangled a small pearl that emitted a light, tinkling sound as her hand moved.
While idly looking around, she suddenly spotted Xie Xiaonan, whom she hadn’t seen for a while, emerging from behind several large rocks with his companions. They followed a stone path upward toward the summit, their figures disappearing moments later without even notifying the instructor, simply leaving like that.
Wen Lisheng, puzzled, walked over to Shan Yichun. “Instructor Shan, I have a question for you.”
On the open ground ahead, two teams from the academy were engaged in a sparring match. Shan Yichun was watching intently and didn’t turn his head upon hearing her voice, merely uttering a questioning syllable, “Hmm?”
“That new young master who just arrived at your Qianshan Academy—do you know who he is?” Wen Lisheng asked.
The question immediately stunned Shan Yichun. He turned to her, lowering his voice. “Young mistress, why are you asking this?”
From his reaction, it seemed he did know.
Just as she was about to speak, Shan Yichun pulled her aside a couple of steps, away from others, and whispered, “That esteemed person has only been at the academy for two days. Those who know his identity can be counted on one hand.”
“What are you afraid of? People will find out sooner or later,” Wen Lisheng said dismissively.
But Shan Yichun insisted, “Even if he has no intention of hiding his identity, it must not spread from our mouths. A single careless word could bring disaster… Forget it, let’s not mention this again.”
Wen Lisheng said, “I just wanted to ask you—if he leaves your martial arts class early, would you stop him?”Shan Yichun was momentarily stunned by the question, then broke into a bright smile. “Even if he tore down Thousand Peaks Academy, I wouldn’t dare utter a single word.”
“Wishful thinking. If Thousand Peaks Academy were gone, your five-year indenture would vanish too. You’d be happier than anyone,” Wen Lisheng scoffed, waving a dismissive hand. “My partner left early, so I’m not participating in this little competition either. I’ll take my leave now.”
No one had expected Wen Lisheng to participate in the first place. Seeing her intention to depart, Shan Yichun immediately cupped his hands in farewell, exchanged a nod with Qi Gong, and Wen Lisheng left under the watchful eyes of the crowd.
Shen Jiaqing trailed eagerly behind her.
As they made their way uphill, Wen Lisheng seethed with pent-up frustration. Swinging a wooden sword, she vented her anger on the roadside plants, muttering curses through gritted teeth. “Xie Xiaonan… that bastard. He never intended to participate from the start—just wanted to torment me!”
The swinging aggravated the dull ache in her arms, making her wince in pain. In a fit of rage, she ignored the soreness in her shoulders and hacked at a rock as if it were Xie Xiaonan, until the wooden sword shattered completely. Only then did she stop, exhaling deeply. “That felt good!”
Wen Lisheng’s temper faded as quickly as it had flared. Tossing aside the broken sword, she grabbed the reins and mounted her horse, urging Shen Jiaqing impatiently, “Let’s go, let’s go. I’m starving.”
The two rode away from Lenggu Waterfall and headed toward the city.
Upon returning to her residence, Wen Lisheng bathed, changed clothes, and indulged in a hearty meal from the table laden with dishes. Afterward, she had a servant set up a parasol and a lounge chair in the courtyard, where she lay back comfortably.
With a glance, she could see the clear, boundless sky, where cotton-like white clouds drifted leisurely. Sunlight filtered through the clouds, a gentle breeze stirred, and summer cicadas chirred incessantly. Bathed in the warmth, Wen Lisheng gradually drifted into sleep.
Perhaps because she had been dwelling on those memories lately, she dreamed of them again.
In the dream, she was led into the Sun family estate in full bridal attire, only to witness her fiancé’s decapitated corpse, the sight of blood pooling on the ground utterly horrifying. Wen Lisheng had seen death and corpses before, but never had she felt such overwhelming fear.
She recalled her father’s frequent warnings: “Xie Xiaonan’s momentum is unstoppable now. Every city he passes surrenders after defeat. What will we do if he one day marches on our Yiguan County?”
“Why don’t we pack up and flee?” Wen Lisheng had suggested.
“I cannot leave,” Wen Puchang had replied. “If I abandon my post, the millions of commoners in Yiguan County will have no one to protect them. Once Xie Xiaonan breaches the city, he will slaughter the innocent, leaving corpses strewn across the land and blood staining the streets…”
Corpses strewn across the land, blood staining the streets.
Trembling, Wen Lisheng’s gaze shifted to Xie Xiaonan at the far end of the courtyard. He was still leisurely wiping his longsword, treating the weapon that had just severed a head with unsettling gentleness.
The thought that this same sword might pierce her abdomen or behead her filled her with instinctive dread.
Xie Xiaonan sheathed his sword and said calmly, “Take them away.”
Wen Lisheng assumed she would be escorted to an unknown place along with the guests kneeling throughout the courtyard. Yet, as everyone was led away one by one, she alone remained, brought into the main hall.
The door closed behind her. Xie Xiaonan sat in the seat of authority, while Wen Lisheng knelt in the center of the hall.
Her back slumped, head bowed as if drained of strength. Her gold-embroidered red wedding gown spilled across the floor, her fair skin glowing softly in the candlelight.”Kneel properly.” Xie Xiaonan suddenly spoke.
Wen Lisheng’s heart skipped a beat, and she hurriedly straightened her back, kneeling upright and proper.
“Wen Lisheng, where is your father?” Xie Xiaonan smiled at her, appearing quite gentle.
She had thought that after three years apart, Xie Xiaonan would have forgotten the matters of Yiguan County, but she never expected he still remembered. That meant he hadn’t forgotten the past grievances either.
Wen Lisheng was terrified, but when she opened her mouth, she said, “I’m the one who wants to marry into the Sun family. It has nothing to do with my father.”
Xie Xiaonan’s voice was cold and clear: “So you’re saying you knew the Sun family was colluding with rebels, intending to ally with foreign tribes to control Yiguan County, and deliberately married into the Sun family to form an alliance between the Wen and Sun families?”
Rebels? You are the biggest rebel in Daliang.
Wen Lisheng didn’t dare say it out loud, only lowering her head stubbornly: “The Wen family knows nothing of these matters, and it has nothing to do with my father! This was all my idea.”
Xie Xiaonan seemed surprised by her words, his dark eyebrows lifting slightly. After a long pause, he said, “Your mouth is so stubborn, so why is your body trembling so violently?”
She gasped sharply and woke from the dream, her nose covered in fine beads of sweat.
Yu Gui hurried over to fan her: “Miss, were you having a nightmare?”
Wen Lisheng patted her chest, took the fan, and began waving it herself. Her movements revealed impatience, but she didn’t speak.
Yu Gui also stood quietly by her side, asking no further questions.
In her agitation, Wen Lisheng’s gaze wandered restlessly until she looked up at the boundless blue sky. Time passed slowly in Yiguan County; in her memory, a single summer took forever to end, and even the greatest worries seemed to melt away in the slowly drifting clouds.
After a long while, Wen Lisheng suddenly thumped her chest with a fist and said angrily, “My mouth is tough, and my body is tough too!”
Yu Gui: “…”
“Miss, are you thirsty? Would you like some water?” she asked with concern.
“From now on, you must call me the Toughest in Yiguan County!” Wen Lisheng declared emphatically.
“Very well, Toughest in Yiguan County,” Yu Gui smoothly changed her address, even more concerned than before, using an honorific: “Would Your Toughness care for some water?”
Wen Lisheng snorted, got up from the lounge chair, stretched with a big yawn, and swayed the fan casually as she beckoned Yu Gui: “No. Come on, let’s go out and have a look.”
Another day of stirring up trouble.