A Leaderless Flock - Part One (Newly Revised)
The moon was still hanging in the dark sky when Pei Jiangxi pulled the hungover Wang Boyu out of his room.
In the main hall of the Quanjun Teahouse, swordsmen from all over the world lay sprawled out. Although a whole night had passed, the air was still thick with the smell of alcohol.
Han Yizhi and the other person covered their mouths and noses and quickly walked towards the door.
Wang Boyu followed along, dazed and unsteady, tripping over things every now and then, not knowing whether he was kicking a drunk person or a table leg.
Seeing Wang Boyu's confused state, Han Yizhi went back and helped Wang Boyu out of the teahouse.
It must have rained last night; the streets are wet. Moonlight spills onto the damp stone slabs, making them look like they've been covered in a thin layer of frost.
Pei Jiangxi stepped on it, and the moonlight rippled beneath her feet. She turned to look at the two people coming out of the teahouse and said with a hint of helplessness, "I told you not to get drunk."
That being said, she herself reeked of alcohol.
The three walked side by side in the moonlight.
"Is it really necessary to sneak around like this?" Han Yizhi asked.
“We’ve already tarnished someone’s reputation. If we don’t leave now, we’ll be in deep trouble once the city lord changes his mind.”
"Are you serious about what you're saying?"
"Otherwise what?"
"Once Li Qian returns to Sword Manor, the whole world will soon know that Sword Bone of Yijian Mountain has joined forces with the demoness Pei Jiangxi," Han Yizhi said. "At this critical juncture, you are swaggering around Sword Casting City like this, you really don't respect the righteous path."
"The news doesn't spread that fast, and besides..." Pei Jiangxi stopped abruptly halfway through her sentence, turning her head to Han Yizhi and gesturing for silence.
Following Pei Jiangxi's gaze, a sprightly old man slowly emerged from the dark alley ahead, seemingly having been waiting for some time. Han Yizhi felt the old man looked somewhat familiar, but couldn't quite place him.
Pei Jiangxi was naturally aware of this. She bowed respectfully to the old man and said, "Junior Li Shixi greets Senior Meng."
Indeed, the person who stepped out of the night was Meng Jizhen.
“Oh,” Meng Jizhen said with some surprise, “you know me.”
"Yes, I had the honor of meeting you, senior, at the sword-making conference on Yijian Mountain when I was a child."
“The Sword Forging Conference,” Meng Jizhen said thoughtfully. “Back then, my two masters, Zhu and Gong, from Yijian Mountain, and I were all still greenhorns.”
"I never imagined that so many years would pass in the blink of an eye, and that such a fine sword would emerge from Yijian Mountain," Meng Jizhen exclaimed.
Immediately afterward, Meng Jizhen asked, "Was this sword forged by Master Zhu and Master Gong?"
"no."
“Sigh,” Meng Jizhen’s heart stirred a little more, and he sighed, “New talents emerge in every generation, and we old men can’t keep up.”
"Senior, you flatter me. Everyone knows that the talent for sword making in the world is only one in a million, and you alone possess three-tenths of it."
Meng Jizhen waved his hand and said, "There's no need to flatter me. I've been waiting here today because I want to make a deal with you."
Meng Jizhen looked at Han Yizhi and said, "This young lady has the appearance of an immortal. She must be the Sword Bone Heroine of Yijian Mountain."
"I dare not accept such praise." Han Yizhi, supporting Wang Boyu, could only bow slightly in response to Meng Jizhen.
“You’re not a little slave girl either,” Meng Jizhen looked at Pei Jiangxi, raised her hand to stop her from answering, and said, “I won’t ask who you are. Just tell me, who has the authority to decide the sword this young man is carrying on his back?”
Han Yizhi subconsciously looked at Pei Jiangxi.
“Name your price.” Meng Jizhen understood and looked at Pei Jiangxi, saying slowly and deliberately, “In this vast Sword Forging City, whatever you want, I can agree to it for Tao Xin. As long as you leave this sword behind.”
Pei Jiangxi smiled and shook her head, saying, "Senior Meng, this sword is priceless."
"I am not very talented, but I have heard that my master received a divinely bestowed sword when he was young." Pei Jiangxi changed the subject and said, "I'm afraid only something so unique is worth exchanging for Boyu's world-saving sword."
"The sword my master obtained was a sword of malice, not a divine gift. That sword is no longer in the city," Meng Jizhen replied.
“However, I do possess a unique item.” With that, Meng Jizhen raised his right hand, letting the iron ring on his ring finger reflect the moonlight.
"This item was also left by my late master and is called 'Martial Needle'." Meng Jizhen looked at the three people in front of him and said, "This ring contains a poisoned needle. It can be activated with a simple operation of the mechanism and is faster than sword intent. In times of crisis, it can be said to be a life-saving item that is one in a million."
“However,” Meng Jizhen added, “there are three poison needles in the ring, and I have already used two. Whether to exchange them or not is entirely up to you, young lady. If you are unwilling, I will not make things difficult for you. Just pretend that we never met today.”
*
The mountain peaks stretched to the horizon like waves on a river, and the misty clouds, like a celestial palace, filled the gaps in the valleys. This is the location of the Canghai Sword Manor.
Mist and clouds swirled among the mountains. The mountain wind rushed through the valleys, the sound of waves echoing and mingling, while the clouds and mist swirled between the peaks. On the long corridor leading from the Canghai Sword Manor's martial arts hall to the main hall, Li Najiong, who had just recovered from a serious illness, leaned against a newly painted pillar, gazing absently at the distant mountains.
Those were layers upon layers of mountains. The mountains were a riot of colors; through the dense curtain of rain, the verdant green of the closer forests was still faintly visible. Further away, they were tinged with a pale blue, becoming mysterious and solemn.
Following the girl's gaze, the wave-like curves, layer upon layer, stretched all the way to the horizon. The mountains slowly lost their color. Looking as far as the eye could see, the mountain ranges still stretched endlessly, but were completely pale, devoid of color. Even worse, only the endless curves left their mark on the horizon, the rest seemingly merging into the sky and earth.
"Miss," Rong Momo rushed towards Li Najing with quick, light steps, a thick velvet shawl draped over her forearm, and asked anxiously and concernedly, "Why did you come here all by yourself?"
The resounding raindrops slanted across the railing, wetting the back of Lee Na-kyung's hands and fingernails.
Lee Na-kyung turned her head to the side, her wet sideburns clinging neatly to her cheeks and winding down to the corners of her mouth.
"Nanny," Lee Na-kyung called out happily when she saw the woman hurrying over with small steps.
Rong Xijiu took out a handkerchief from her clothes, tiptoed slightly, and carefully wiped Li Najiong's hair and cheeks.
"What are you grinning about?" Rong Xijiu was a little angry, and had already rehearsed the words of reprimand in his mind several times, but when he saw the girl in front of him leaning forward and grinning foolishly, he couldn't help but smile.
After wiping away the rain, Rong Xijiu draped a cloud-shaped shawl over Li Najiong's shoulders.
Looking up at Lee Na-kyung, she still had two small dimples under her cheekbones, and her eyes refused to leave Yoshihisa Jung.
After a flurry of activity, Rong Xijiu's gaze finally met those heterochromatic eyes. The sound of the wind whipping her clothes, the rustling of the trees like waves crashing against the ground, and the drumbeat of raindrops pattering on the roof of the covered walkway—all these sounds mingled together in that moment. Rong Xijiu herself wasn't sure if her heart had skipped a beat.
Lee Na-kyung took Rong Hee-gu's hand and said, "Nanny, look at this mountain, this rain. It's still the same as before."
Rong Xijiu followed Lee Nagyeong's gaze and saw raindrops flying aimlessly through the air. The heavy rain, carried by the wind, swept through the corridor and reached the other side in an instant, rushing towards the forest behind the two of them.
"You haven't changed either."
Rong Xijiu opened the oil-paper umbrella in her hand and said, "Let's go, Miss. Master is waiting."
Is the conference today?
“The representatives of various sword sects have been here for a while,” Rong Xijiu said as she led Li Najiong away. “We searched the whole manor but couldn’t find you, Miss, so I thought I’d try my luck at the Martial Arts Hall.”
"Thank you for your hard work." Looking at the sword intent that was uncontrollably gathering and twisting in her palm, Lee Na-kyung said resentfully, "I just wanted to see what kind of charm this thing that makes brothers fight each other has."
Rong Xijiu did not answer again, but silently held up the umbrella in the wind.
*
Canghai Sword Manor, Council Hall.
Today, the council hall of Canghai Sword Manor is filled with distinguished guests, young and old alike. Some are seated, some standing; almost all the top swordsmen from the Southern Sword Sect are gathered here.
Among them, a middle-aged man sat calmly in the main seat of the hall, with a gold-hilted sword inlaid with turquoise and decorated with coiled dragon patterns hanging at his waist. He was naturally Li Zizhan, the leader of the Southern Sword Sect, the master of Canghai Sword Manor, and the "Sword Immortal".
"Gentlemen, I am well aware of the risks of this trip," Li Zizhan said in a deep voice. "Jian Gu has already colluded with the demoness, and my son only managed to escape with his life by sheer luck. Now that Yi Jian Mountain's attitude is unclear, if we continue to insist on the North-South conflict, we will only give Liuli Palace the opportunity to defeat us one by one. Once she takes control of the Central Plains, we will have no chance to turn the tide."
"Where did Li Jie and the manor lord agree to meet?" someone asked.
"Lord Sword Maniac specifically instructed me not to mention the agreed location to anyone else. This meeting will be between the two of us."
"What if he plots against you?"
"Now is a critical moment for the survival of the martial arts world in the Central Plains. Even if there is only a one in ten thousand chance of an alliance, I, Li, am determined to go." Li Zizhan said solemnly, "No matter what the outcome, it is my destiny."
“The eldest young master is traveling abroad, and the second young master is currently injured and bedridden. If anything were to happen to Master Li, who would take charge of the situation? Senior, please reconsider.” Upon hearing this, dissenting voices rose and fell throughout the hall.
"This is also why I invited everyone to Fenglinhai this time." Li Zizhan looked around and finally his gaze fell on the door of the main hall.
The distant mountains, which were originally blue, now appeared white in the rain. Only the undulating curves remained as clearly defined as if carved by a knife and axe.
Everyone followed Li Zizhan's gaze.
A corner of an oil-paper umbrella peeked out from the right side of the gate, clearly tilted towards the distant mountains. Rong Xijiu entered the scene first, her right hand trembling as she supported the umbrella. Despite the apparent difficulty, the umbrella remained steadfast amidst the raging rain.
Next to enter the scene is a slender young woman, one hand gripping Rong Xijiu's arm, the other around her waist. It is Lee Na-kyung.
Lee Na-kyung supported Yong Hee-gu as they navigated through the gusts of wind in the corridor, finally stepping into the main hall.
Rong Xijiu folded her paper umbrella and smoothed the strands of hair that had blown into her eyes. Li Najiong moved to the other side and gently brushed the water droplets off her clothes.
"Master, Miss has arrived," Rong Xijiu said respectfully.
"Thank you for your hard work, Rong Mama." Li Zizhan nodded, his gaze shifting to Li Najiong, who was wiping raindrops from Rong Xijiu's face with her sleeve. He said affectionately, "This is the first time I'm introducing you all. This is my youngest daughter, Li Najiong."
Lee Na-kyung raised her face under everyone's gaze, revealing a pair of heterochromatic eyes.
The moment her gaze met those pupils, Lee Na-kyung no longer suppressed the sword intent surging in her blood.
Inside the main hall and in the corridors, all the strong winds and raindrops that had been poured in howled and flew backwards.
Although it only lasted for a blink of an eye, everyone truly felt a moment of vacuum and silence.
"If I, Li, do indeed meet with misfortune, I humbly request that you all lend a helping hand to my Canghai Sword Manor in the future," Li Zizhan said.
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