This Sword Cultivator is Somewhat Dependable-Chapter 1645 - 16: The Path of the Sword Disciple

Xia Daoyun entered the vast grassland.

The grassland after a heavy rain, the air was very fresh. A gust of wind swept by, bringing not only the scent of grass and earth but also a biting chill.

She still wore the bamboo hat and straw raincoat gifted by the old granny. Although it was meant for snow, it was quite suitable for rain too.

However, Xia Daoyun now had some new gear on her.

A pair of straw sandals and a bamboo stick for navigating the path.

The straw sandals were a gift from a shepherd she met along the way, who told her that straw sandals are essential for walking on the grassland.

The bamboo stick was found by Xia Daoyun on the road, discarded by someone unknown.

On the rain-soaked grassland, there were puddles of unknown depth, requiring a bamboo stick to probe the way.

The bamboo hat, straw raincoat, and straw sandals trio, initially Xia Daoyun rejected them, but could not resist the persistent kindness.

She was always a very cold person, not willing to do anything she disliked, but perhaps due to the sincere old granny and the simple shepherd, she found herself unable to refuse.

Yet as time passed, Xia Daoyun inexplicably developed a deep affection for the trio on her.

Because donning them while traversing this long path unconsciously made her abandon her past identity, she was no longer Xia Daoyun, no longer the Sky Dome Heaven's foremost female sword cultivator, and not... It was as if she was truly just a mortal traveler in the wind and rain, discarding all traces of the mundane, her spirit becoming increasingly pure.

Roaring!

At this moment, a muffled thunder suddenly echoed from the sky.

Bolts of lightning soon arrived, dancing wildly in the sky like silver snakes.

Before long, the heavy rain came pouring down again.

Crashing down.

Raindrops fell on Xia Daoyun's straw raincoat and bamboo hat, instantly shattering and splashing everywhere, the crisp sound of impact continuously echoing.

In the torrential rain, Xia Daoyun did not stop to seek shelter from the rain, nor did she shield herself with mana to keep the rain out, instead letting it continuously fall, with occasional raindrops hitting her hair.

Far from being concerned, in the end, she even closed her eyes, walking forward within the rain, as if united with heaven and earth.

Listening not to the sound piercing the forest and leaves, why not chant aloud and walk slowly.

Riding the bamboo stick and straw sandals lighter than a horse, who fears?

With a straw raincoat, smoke, and rain for life.

Step by step, leaving footprints.

In the sound of rain, on the path walked by the most charismatic sword cultivator of the Chang'an Years, Xia Daoyun kept moving forward, her heart gradually developing a never before experienced insight.

After a day and night of nonstop walking, the sound of raindrops finally ceased, Xia Daoyun opened her eyes, sensing a piece of bright light.

In such a short time, she had traversed a path that would take an ordinary person months, finally stepping out of the grassland onto a high slope.

Thunk, thunk.

A broad river flowed past beside Xia Daoyun, meandering along the slope downward towards the plains below.

On the plains next to the river stood a town of the Human Race, at the break of dawn, with early risers laboring.

Somehow, despite being right in front, in Xia Daoyun's eyes, the town, river, and people all seemed like a shrunken painting, shrouded in the mist of dawn, dreamlike and surreal.

She turned back to look; it was the direction the light came from, the direction she came from.

A blazing red sun leaped up from the grassland's edge, dispersing the mist, bringing her back to reality.

In a blink, the mountains and rivers were red all over, everything bustling, green like it's about to overflow with juice.

"Turning back to the desolate place, neither wind nor rain nor sunshine."

A sudden surge of broad-mindedness welled up in Xia Daoyun's heart, an enlightening transcendence, scattering all chaotic, distracting thoughts.

...

Standing quietly in the light of dawn for a while, Xia Daoyun adjusted her straw raincoat once more and set off again.

This time, she wasn't traversing cold snowy mountains or vast grasslands, but striding towards that noisy town, that bustling human world.

Along the Yangguan Road, with agreeable weather, she traveled smoothly. Merely in ten days, she had crossed two states, multiple nations, going in and out of dozens of cities.

The path transformed from rugged mountain trails to wide city roads or postal routes, with entirely different sights and scenes along the way, offering Xia Daoyun an experience and mood starkly different from before.

Along the way were merchants driving carts to trade, scholars reading diligently for years journeying to the capital for exams hoping for highest honors, peasants and small vendors lugging fruits and vegetables into the town from outside, officials being demoted... Bustling yet orderly, all walking the path, all with something seeking, all with a destination.

So, where lies my path, my destination?

Xia Daoyun asked herself introspectively.

Her expression remained cold, demeanor unchanging, but her heart increasingly questioned deeply.

However, her will remained unshaken.

Heart like a child, will like steel.

Xie Qingyun's comment, Xia Daoyun is the first among flowers, the most talented among female sword cultivators, was indeed not baseless.

Though she had doubts, she was never lost.

She always knew her own path.

Some days later, crossing another mountain, ahead lay blue skies and white clouds.

Below the blue skies and white clouds was a grander and magnificent city.

Xia Daoyun knew she had entered Chu County's territory, and ahead was the expected Chu County City.

Her heart stirred slightly, giving rise to anticipation.

For Xia Zhao had told her that he left a trace in Chu County City, a trace unknown to anyone.

Chu County City, being a grand city, naturally had the demeanor of a grand city, without unnecessary inquiries, nor so-called entrance fees.

Xia Daoyun leisurely entered the city, the roads inside were clean and tidy, the houses very exquisite.

She casually approached a pedestrian at the side of the road, asked for directions briefly, and found the renowned Sword Disciple Tower in Chu County City.

The Sword Disciple Tower, though known only within Chu County City, was an inconspicuous "tavern" in the entire Chu County across two states.

Initially, the Sword Disciple Tower was truly just a tavern, surrounded by many peach blossoms.

Every year when the flowers bloom, there's the beautiful scene of peach blossoms laughing in the spring breeze. However, what truly made it famous wasn't the beauty of the peach blossoms, but the owner of the tavern.

He was a swordsman from another place, not yet old, just having reached middle age. It was not known whether he lost in a sword fight or was ambushed by an enemy, but his sword-wielding right hand was severed.

For a swordsman, losing the right hand, the implications of such an event need not be spelled out.

So, he came to Chu County City, where no one knew him, and used his savings from his younger days of adventuring in the martial world to set up a tavern.

In the entire Chu County City, no one knew this swordsman's name, only that his surname was Li, and he liked crows, hence some called him Manager Li, while others called him the Crow Swordsman.

Perhaps his martial dream hadn't ended, or maybe he missed something, or it was just a "promotional" method to start his business, Manager Li established a strange rule: He placed a gigantic stele at the entrance of the tavern, where diners could eat for free if they could leave a mark on the stele with a left-handed sword before entering.

In any event, because of this gimmick, the Sword Apprentice Tower suddenly gained fame.

Whether they truly possessed skill or just wanted to fake it, every day many so-called "swordsmen" came to the Sword Apprentice Tower.

Many failed, and many succeeded.

The Sword Apprentice Tower indeed became a hit.

Seeing this, some taverns imitated the strategy, but the results were always less than satisfactory, remaining lukewarm.

Ten years passed like this, and one day, the Sword Apprentice Tower suddenly closed. Some people saw Manager Li leave the city, carrying a newly forged iron sword from the city blacksmith, destination unknown.

A month later, Manager Li returned, and the Sword Apprentice Tower reopened with the same rules.

However, people in the city found that the once-popular tavern now saw many swordsmen coming from afar.

For some reason, these swordsmen squatted at the entrance gazing at the stele full of mottled sword marks, often observing it for an entire day, as if some mystery lay within.

Later, people gradually came to understand the reason behind it.

It turned out that Manager Li was actually an extraordinary swordsman, rising from common origins without ever apprenticing under a famous master. Yet, he made a name for himself with sword techniques considered lowly by martial world experts, earning the emerging title of the Number One Swordsman.

However, ten years ago, before a crucial match to contend for the Number One Swordsman title, he was ambushed by the enemy, his right arm severed, and he retreated in sorrow from the martial world.

No one expected that ten years later he would make a comeback, wielding a left-handed sword with mastery far surpassing his former right hand, avenging the noble sword families who once ambushed him.

How did he learn to fight left-handed?

Everyone was curious.

Manager Li wasn't secretive about it, candidly stating: he learned it from the swordsmen in Chu County City.

The sword manual was the stele at the entrance to the Sword Apprentice Tower, thus creating today's magnificent scene.

And it was at this time that Li Qiubai passed through Chu County City.

Seemingly intrigued by a common swordsman sharing his surname, he specifically came to the Sword Apprentice Tower, leaving a sword mark of his own on the entrance stele and enjoyed a free meal.

Luckily, at that time, Li Qiubai was walking low-profile through the world, not revealing his name, so no cultivator knew of this event.

Had they known, the Sword Apprentice Tower would have transcended its notoriety long ago, becoming a Sword Cultivator's Holy Land.

....

At the entrance of the Sword Apprentice Tower.

The stele appeared ancient, the sword marks mottled and densely packed.

These sword marks bore no signatures, whose mark belonged to whom, perhaps after some years, even the swordsmen themselves wouldn't recognize them.

Yet, Xia Daoyun immediately recognized the mark left by Li Qiubai.

Some people, like grains of gold among sand, cannot be concealed.

Even just his left mark manifests this truth.

It was a slanted sword mark, appearing ordinary, yet subtly eclipsing all other marks on the stele, beyond which lay no other profundities.

In truth, all other marks appeared incredibly mundane in Xia Daoyun's view.

But it was the very combination of these mundane marks that Li Qiubai's stroke rendered a profound and moving force.

In spiritual tremor, Xia Daoyun unconsciously reached out, touching that sword mark.

As she caressed this mark left by Li Qiubai on the stele years ago, an inexplicable energy surged in her heart.

This is... the Sword of the Human World.

As Xia Daoyun muttered, regaining her senses, she withdrew her hand, her gaze moving away from the stele, turning instead to this tavern nestled amidst peach groves, laden with a long history.

After glancing around, her eyes finally settled on the plaque hanging from the tavern.

Perhaps the original sign was too old, so the tavern had a new plaque made, looking brand new.

Sunlight fell upon the plaque, casting a golden glow upon the three large characters inscribed on it.

In that instant upon seeing those three characters, Xia Daoyun's spirit shook.

She suddenly understood why Li Qiubai once said, "To forge an invincible path, one must first walk untold paths."

Understood why Li Qiubai had chosen to walk the world like a mortal.

Also realized why, years ago, Li Qiubai stopped at the Sword Apprentice Tower to leave his mark.

It wasn't because of sharing the surname "Li" with the Crow Swordsman.

It was because of sharing the "principle" with the Crow Swordsman.

Her heart cleared in an instant, long-held confusion vanished on its own.

......

The plaque was new, but the name was old.

It was named by the Crow Swordsman.

Sword Apprentice Tower.

What is a Sword Apprentice?

A novice learning the sword?

Not so.

True masters always carry the heart of an apprentice.