Estranged Chapter 1

Published at 1st of August 2021 09:25:27 AM

Chapter 1. At the end of the sky, at the edge of the sea, Changming returns there [1]

He used to have four disciples.

All four of them were talented and had their own strengths.

Whatever happened, he was sure they would become masters of great learning and integrity. Given a chance, they might have been able to break through their limitations and ascend.

Now it seems that they didn’t join the sea of sameness, proving that he wasn’t mistaken back then.

Unfortunately—

When he thought of the past, Changming heard a sound of buzzing in his ears, as if hundreds of mosquitoes were pouring into his skull, causing confusion and turmoil, disturbing and speeding up the flow of blood and qi in his head.

At the same time, all blood in his body rushed from his limbs, fingertips and soles of his foot to his heart, increasing his heart rate and almost making him vomit blood.

“Daoyou? Brother Changming?”

Seeing that his expression was not right, He Xiyun stopped talking and stepped forward to take a look.

He frowned. His face was cold and white, and beads of sweat formed on his forehead, as if he was enduring great pain.

He Xiyun subconsciously grasped Changming’s wrist, trying to regulate his internal breath. But when she transferred her spiritual energy to him, she was startled.

As if there was a whirlpool inside Changming’s body, her spiritual power, like mud and rocks sinking into a sea, disappeared without a trace.

He Xiyun subconsciously wanted to withdraw her energy, but realised that although he had no spiritual power at all, there was a force that inexplicably attracted her spiritual power, making her unable to retreat at will.

Changming suddenly grabbed He Xiyun with his other hand and pushed her away.

She fell on the ground.

“There is no need to waste your spiritual powers…” said Changming hoarsely. His voice was trembling, as if his sufferings were not alleviated at the slightest.

He Xiyun gasped for breath, not yet recovered from the shock. She didn’t know how to help the other party, and was feeling a bit lost.

“It will get better later.” Changming propped his head, slowly uttering every word.

He Xiyun nodded, not daring to speak. She even forgot to get up and just continued to sit on the ground.

After some time, he seemed to be feeling better, so He Xiyun asked a question.

“Are you injured?”

Changming hummed: “Old wounds that haven’t healed until now, it happens from time to time, that’s fine.”

He Xiyun cautiously said, “Did you also enter the Yellow Springs to gain experience?”

Changming frowned, and it took awhile for him to answer: “I don’t remember.”

He Xiyun thought that he was either reluctant to answer, or it was a sore subject for him. But the pondering and bewildered expression on Changming’s face did not seem to be fake.

“I only remember that before I entered the Yellow Springs, the emperor of the Hong dynasty was Hong Can, who had ruled over the empire for twenty years.”

He Xiyun was surprised: “That was the second to last emperor of the Xinghong dynasty. He died in the twenty-fifth year of his reign. The last emperor was overthrown after three years of reign. Then the country was fragmented by rivaling feudal lords, and small states emerged in large numbers, and little by little lands were divided into more than three factions. That said, you, daoyou, have been in the Yellow Springs for at least fifty years!”

The more she spoke, the more surprised she became.

“As far as I know, the monsters in the Yellow Springs are rampant, and the evil spirits are causing trouble. No one can live there for more than ten years. We went in knowing we would most certainly die, and you could stay there for fifty years?! You, who on earth are you? I just checked, and your spiritual power is gone, don’t tell me you only rely on the art of conferring spirit?”

He Xiyun was a bit stunned.

Because there are fatal dangers everywhere in the Yellow Springs, the shixiong who went in with her, although he had a higher cultivation level, lost his life nevertheless, not even leaving behind bones. He Xiyun managed to survive until that moment not only because of her sharp mind, delicate character and vigilance: she also was quite lucky.

After being stunned for a moment, she quickly calmed down.

Many cultivators have unspeakable secrets. Knowing too much is not a good thing.

“Sorry, I shouldn’t ask so many questions.”

It wasn’t that Changming didn’t want to answer, he just really didn’t remember.

His memory was confused, and even though he still had the overall picture, most of the details were chaotic, like a torn map. Some parts of it were in the right places, and some parts were fused together – how could he connect all these pieces to complete the whole picture?

Under a flickering candlelight, fragments lost in nooks can occasionally be found.

If he picked up those fragments, the map, slowly, little by little, would return to its original form.

But it was unknown how long it would take.

Changming remembered that he was wandering through the Yellow Springs to kill someone.

But why kill and whether this person was dead now, he couldn’t remember.

He also remembered that he had a sword named Sifei.

Sifei: four ‘no’s.

No to Daoism, no to Buddhism, no to Demonic ways, no to Confucianism.

The sword had the essence of the first snow of the top of Kunlun Mountain, was forged with black crystals of the shores of the Donghai Sea, from places poles apart. It exhausted his life force, and gained consciousness. It could fuse the stars with the moon, break through brambles and thorns, and cut a way through the mountains and seas, helping him reach a high level of swordsmanship and become one of the mightiest cultivators in his generation.

But that sword…

Where was it now?

But he couldn’t think about it for too long.

When he started thinking about it, his head hurt even more.

His temples throbbed with pain suddenly, as if there were rusty chains completely shackling his ability to reason.

“I want to retrieve my sword.” He said.

Retrieving the Sifei Sword could possibly help him recover his memories.

There was even a chance it could aid him in rebuilding his cultivation, though he was not sure.

“Sword?” He Xiyun asked, “Which sword? I have seen a lot of swords, maybe I can help.”

Changming: “The blade is black, thin and smooth. At first glance, it looks simple and unadorned, but if you find a suitable person to infuse it with spiritual powers, the golden lines on the blade will become visible.”

He Xiyun was frustrated: “Sorry, I have never heard of it.”

Changming had no hope since the beginning, so he just shook his head when he heard this, indicating that he didn’t care.

He Xiyun: “My shixiong and I entered the Yellow Springs to gain experience. We secretly went down the mountain without notifying our teacher. But we got into trouble, and only I survived. I have to return to my sect, report to shifu and receive my punishment. If you don’t remember the location of your sect, it’s better for you to go to the Qingbei Mountain with me. When my shifu learns you saved my life, he will definitely invite you to be our guest. You can settle down on the Qingbei Mountain until your health recovers.”

Changming pondered for a moment, and said: “I want to find my first disciple.”

He Xiyun was amazed: “What is your disciple’s name?”

Changming: “It seems to be Yun Weisi.”

He Xiyun was stunned for a while: “Don’t tell me, it is Yun Weisi, the lord of the Nine Layers of the Abyss?”

Changming: “I only remember that his name is Yun Weisi. Whether he really is the person you mentioned, I don’t know.”

He Xiyun: “Where is he now?”

Changming: “I don’t know.”

“I don’t know” to every question—his blackouts were widespread indeed.

Changming: “Where are the Nine Layers of the Abyss?”

He Xiyun was speechless for a while.

“I don’t know the location of the Nine Layers of the Abyss either. I only overheard elders of my sect mentioning it a few times. If you want to go there, you must follow me to my sect.”

The two of them had a long conversation that night, and when they raised their eyes again, the sky in the east had brightened and the stars and the moon were already faint.

They were in the Gobi Desert, but the lands were not barren. Trees and villages were faintly visible not far away. As the sky was getting brighter, it got warmer. He Xiyun suggested walking to the village; first to find water, and then to ask someone for directions.

Naturally, Changming had no objections.

…

Qingshui Village was an unremarkable small village.

But that day, it not only had two uninvited visitors, Changming and He Xiyun, but also a group of distinguished guests.

They were the Qixian Sect’s disciples.

Qingshui Village was located at the foot of Weiqing Mountain, the Qixian Sect’s territory. The lands around the Qixian Sect have been cultivated for generations. Among the villagers, those with outstanding qualifications had an opportunity to enter the Qixian Sect, be selected as outer or even inner disciples and tread the path of seeking immortality.

When the villagers heard that the people from the Qixian Sect came looking for new disciples, they didn’t bother to entertain He Xiyun and her companion. In high spirits, they all pushed forward their clever and quick-witted children, hoping that they would be favored by the distinguished guests and escape the hardships of commoners.

He Xiyun and Changming watched them with cold eyes, knowing that the road of cultivation was not at all what these villagers imagined, not an “enter the sect and be free of worries” kind of life.

The world is great and wide, there are many people with outstanding talents. If a person has no extraordinary ambitions, no determination to endure the unbearable, or is not ready to risk his life, it is difficult for him to survive through the long years of deadly challenges.

Even if his character is suitable for cultivation, he might still not get the last laugh: luck and wisdom are also crucial.

And the Qixian Sect is no famous sect, at best it’s just—

At this point He Xiyun couldn’t help but sigh.

“It turns out that this place is the territory of the Jianxue Clan! So that’s why the Qixian Sect sounds so familiar. There are seven small vassal sects under the Jianxue Clan, the Qixian Sect is one of them!”

Changming: “Did you mention before that the Jianxue Clan’s head is Zhou Keyi?”

He Xiyun: “Right.”

Changming: …

His first disciple is nowhere to be found, so he first stumbles upon the third one?

He Xiyun was looking at the Qixian Sect’s disciples, not paying attention to his weird expression.

“This person is very moody, cruel and bloodthirsty, it’s not good to mention his name on their territory. Let’s go quickly, it’s bad to stay here for long!”

When her voice fell, a disciple of the Qixian Sect, who was looking around, stretched out his hand to stop them.

“You two, come here!”

Translator’s notes:

[1] At the end of the sky, at the edge of the sea, Changming returns there: reference to Chinese folklore song “Pavilion Farewell”. You can read the English translation here. In short, the song is about a person bidding farewell to his friends; on the contrary, MXS turned it into something quite optimistic.

Sentences in [brackets] are sentences where I don’t believe in my translation.

Chapter end