Yan Xing’s saber was named “Duan Shui”.¹ This name was not given by him.
He believes that a blade is just a blade, there’s no need for any names.
It’s a name that was given by the populace.
That year, it hadn’t been long since Yan Xing departed from the sect. Amidst the desolate prairies of the Eastern Continent, he caught sight of the Wei River’s majesty, surging across the wide plains. Following the tides of his fortune, he traveled alongside the river’s flow; throughout his journeying, his cultivation rose steadily step by step, until he reached the midpoint of the great river and entered the Lesser Vessel stage.
He broke through too easily, his energy too vigorous- so much so that it caused a senior he came across to be extremely displeased.
That Bao Pu sect elder ordered a servant to lower the grand carriage². With the air of descending from above, he alighted from the carriage.
From across the river, he lectured Yan Xing, “Which family’s junior are you, to be so rude and uncouth; for what reason would you not restrain your energy when encountering an elder? To be so arrogant and domineering, your journey on the path of cultivation will not be long! You must know ‘drawing a blade to cut water will only quicken its flow³’, ‘the dao⁴ of heaven is long and arduous, the hardship passed by none’⁵. Youngsters these days! Only a little bit of strength and you believe there is naught under heaven you cannot do; in the future you will surely stumble!”
These words seemed to be ones of guidance from an elder, but they were full of cursing and resentment.
Yan Xing mused: ‘This really lacks reason. Between us is a river, even if my vital energy was fully externalized it’s impossible that it would bump into you, not to mention how your cultivation realm is a bit higher than mine.’
This person has never taught him, nor has he raised him, yet he is here posturing as a senior to lecture him.
This led to him remembering something shifu once said, “Not everyone with a high cultivation and lived a long life will carry the demeanor of a respectable senior. There will always be people who grow more arrogant as they grow stronger; the longer they live, the more they fear death. It’s this type of person who most cannot stomach flaunting of the youths, making them feel as if their own primes are ones of failure and shame.”
And then shifu looked at him and sighed, “This old man had no shortage of encounters like this. Between you three disciples of this old man, you’re the most similar to me. It’s unavoidable that you will also meet such a person in the future. When that time comes you must remember, if you can beat them, beat them, if you cannot beat them, you still need to anger them to death.”
In the end the Sword Saint concluded, “Youngsters should show off, one way or another.”
It’s a pity that Duan Chongxuan had yet to become a disciple, otherwise it wouldn’t have taken him more than three sentences before he enraged that person to death.
At this point, Yan Xing was still very young, but he also had his own methods.
Since he was a youth, if someone had a problem with him, then he can only draw his blade!
Yan Xing directly hacked forth with his blade!
He didn’t chop towards the person on the other shore, but the surging river itself!
Three thousand tremendous waves arose from nothing!
Boundless energy erupted from the person on the opposite shore, clashing with the waves mid air above the river’s banks.
The water streamed towards the clouds, flowing endlessly. The two shores of the river seemingly drowned in a violent downpour.
The phenomenon drew many people to the wastelands; but a battle between two people at the Lesser Vessel stage can only be watched from afar.
When the river’s water returned to the ground, the onlookers were shocked to find that the flow of the Wei River was irrecoverably severed, the river’s waters split down two paths.
The youth’s saber has already been returned to its sheath, his clothes soaked through with river water, dark forelocks dripping.
Not a single one of the onlookers would feel that he cut a sorry figure, instead an unrestrained elation arose within them.
“Master- Wei Jingfeng.”
This was a reply to the question posed earlier, “Which family’s junior are you?”
“What ‘drawing a blade to cut water will only quicken its flow’, I don’t understand these things.”
The unsaid meaning was: I’ll cut it for you to see!
No one knows what happened afterwards in this tale, because the story thus far was already exhilarating enough to catapult a powerful youth to fame.
With a single slash he was able to bisect the Wei River; to cause a river’s path to divert and diverge.
Therefore his saber came to be called Duan Shui.
This kind of character, facing an elder of Bao Pu sect would still dare to brandish his blade and split the waters-
was currently hiding in the forest on the outskirts of Ye City, using a technique he was unpracticed with, carefully avoiding a young man with a cultivation realm lower than his own.
One has to mention, this was a truly tragic affair; tragic to the point that it was humorous.
Not only Duan Chongxuan, even Yin Biyue was beginning to grow curious. Just what was going on here?
Yan Xing reluctantly recounted his grievances with the Qing Lu Sword Sect’s young heir.
Half a year ago, Yan Xing arrived on the Southern Continent for the “Drunken Immortal⁶” wine in the wine cellars of Rong City.
He had already traveled for a long while. All of his drinking buddies know: the more drunk Yan Xing was, the clearer his eyes become. There were no signs of intoxication, save for a mouth full of drunken words.
He drank from morning till night. Without using his core energy to dissipate the alcohol, he’d long became drunk. However, his steps were were steady on the street, no one could discern he was drunk to the point he was unable to distinguish between male or female, human or beast.
He just so happened to meet with Song Tang of the Qing Lu Sword Sect upon a narrow road.
Song Tang led a group of disciples to descend from the Qing Lu mountain, rushing towards Ye City. Perceiving that the person in their path was someone in the Lesser Vessel stage, though not dressed in the style of a cultivator, he still chose to step aside. Yet he was blocked by the other man.
“What are you called?”
Out of courtesy, Song Tang introduced himself, “Qing Lu Sword Sect Song Tang; what matter does fellow dao-friend seek with me?”
Who knew when Yan Xing heard his reply he would burst into unbridled laughter.
“Song Tang⁷? This name of yours is pretty sweet, beautiful!”
It was the depths of the night, there was no one loitering about the streets. Anger surged up in a cresting wave as Song Tang impulsively sent his scabbard forth in a strike at Yan Xing.
Yan Xing was already drunk out of his wits, believing since it’s the first time in his life he was teasing⁸ a girl, what’s the harm in letting her hit him a little.
…..Ss, this little lady’s pretty strong.
Song Tang didn’t have any idea that his opponent absolutely had no intent of fighting back, and with a single strike, he actually ended up snapping the man’s leg.
But he couldn’t bring himself to apologize. Luckily, for someone who was at the Lesser Vessel stage, this kind of injury would heal after a few days, so he ended up simply leaving a bottle of medicinal pills and left.
It stands to reason that this matter concluded here.
Young Heir Song snapped a leg, vented his anger.
The most unfortunate thing was that a month later, Yan Xing bumped into another drinking buddy and once again drank too much.
Somebody asked him, “I heard that you told Song Tang his name was sweet to his face?”
Yan Xing grandly waved him aside. “Hahaha! The man’s sweeter!”
That day’s Tai He Pavilion had many people with many wagging tongues. Before even half a day has passed, the incident already spread throughout Ye City.
The matter had already spiraled out of control, spreading far and wide.
From that day forth, when mentioning Young Heir Song’s name on the Southern Continent, the first thing people would think of wasn’t Qing Lu Sword Sect, nor was it of Jing Hong Sword and the Feathered Mantle Arts⁹, it was…
—— The man is sweeter.
Thus Song Tang, wait no, Song Tang was truly infuriated this time, vowing to track down Yan Xing for a fight.
Even if there was a gap between their cultivation realms, he did not believe he had no hope of beating Yang Xing.
Yin Biyue felt that this was reasonable; just as though he is called Yin Biyue, if someone had the gall to say something like his beauty “eclipsed the moon and embarrassed the flowers¹⁰”, he would unhesitatingly draw his sword and teach them a lesson on humility!
Duan Chatterbox’s attention clearly took a trip to the gutter, his smile containing immoral intentions,
“Which leg of yours did he break?”
Yan Xing started, when he finally realized, “Right leg! What nonsense are you thinking!!”
Yan Xing knows that he was in the wrong. Unwilling to raise his hand against Song Tang, he planned to leave the southern continent.
He sighed deeply, “I, Yan Xing have grown to be this old; haven’t even held a girl’s hand. From this one sentence I’ve been deemed a scoundrel by the entirety of the southern continent! It’s all a mistake borne of drinking!”
Then he took a swig from his hip flask.
Yin Biyue speechlessly took a look at the three of them.
Very good. Three people. Three totally different styles¹¹.
Shifu!
Old man, did you truly select your disciples seriously!?
We three must be the complementary items from a “buy a treasured sword, get disciples free” promotional event you attended right!!
After he finished talking about his own matters, Yan Xing suddenly remembered why they’ve come, “Fourth-shidi, you should freely fight in the Flower Picking Festival! There’s no one who’d beat you!”
Third Martial Brother!¹²
Where did this confidence that you and Senior Martial Brother¹² have in me come from!!
Yan Xing finished drinking his wine, and without even cleaning up the array flag strewn on the ground, waved his hand, “I don’t know when that one surnamed Song will come around again… The promised lands will not change, clear waters will continue to flow, I’m sure we shall meet again! Next time I’ll buy the drinks!”
His words barely made it out of his mouth before his figure was already thirty meters away.
Looking at Yan Xing’s fleeing back, Yin Biyue realised there were more pressing matters at hand.
Xi Hua Peak originally was on bad terms with Bao Pu Sect, a vicious battle sure to ensue.
Now adding on that third-shixiong had offended the Qing Lu Sword Sect, and Qing Lu Sword Sect has a Zhong Shan.
How was he supposed to get through this Flower Picking Festival!?
1) 断水- to cut apart water
2) 大辇 – a large carriage used by emperors. 50200009239445155080402016713
3) 抽刀断水水更流- Using a blade to cut water, it will flow more. Used to describe doing something futile.
4) a “path” of enlightenment- in this case the set of morals, ideals, and actions to reach heaven.
5) 天道路远如泥途，苦厄无人渡 – It seems like it’s an idiom but maybe it’s just one made up by TP? It’s essentially what it says on the tin.
6) A wine’s name. Yan Xing is not looking for a master in the depths of the wine cellars.
7) 送糖- which sounds the same as 宋棠, which is Song Tang’s actual name. Here begins a lengthy explanation of the pun. I recommend you save this till the end. Song Tang, the actual name is composed of Song, of the Song dynasty, and Tang as in a type of plant. Song Tang, as I’ve styled it is Song as in to give/gift/deliver and Tang as in sugar/candy. Yan Xing, the absolute drunkard, latched onto the meaning of candy and remarked that his name was sweet. This continues onwards till later on so please remember that I’ll be styling the pun version of Song Tang using italics.
8) 调戏- the meaning is a bit more insidious. It’s more like deliberately taking liberties
9) The name of his sword and the cultivation skill/arts that Song Tang uses.
10) 闭月羞花: bì yuè xiū huā, a counterpart to Yin Biyue’s name that he makes a pun off of in the same vein as the pun on Song Tang. The meaning is as I’ve translated, eclipse the moon and embarrass the flowers, as an idiom to describe women who have a beauty that goes beyond earthly bounds. That’s right, it’s a description for women. Good job, YBY. Shortly after there exists another pun, 壁 looks incredibly close to the Bi in Yin Biyue (save a single stroke) as a part of a way to convey “immediately”. This entire sentence is just an absolute masterpiece.
11) 画风迥异 – the art styles are entirely different. Basically to say that the image of the three of them were extremely different.
12) 三湿胸/大湿胸: third moist chest/big moist chest. It sounds the same as 三师兄/大师兄. It’s honestly just a meme in China to more emphatically say shixiong.
13) 青山不改,绿水长流,我们后会有期 [an idiom]: we shall meet again so long as time continues.