Young Blade Wielders

The sky had just begun to brighten, and the morning mist hung lightly over the land.

It had just passed Grain in Ear Harvest Begins. As the saying went, "Small Fullness, small fullness—the wheat grains are gradually filling." North of the Yangtze, winter wheat had begun to fill out, growing plump but not yet fully mature. That stage was called "Small Fullness."

On the Guanzhong Plain, a thousand years of wind, frost, Blood Fire, and clashing drums and horns had long since vanished into the gullies of the loess. At that moment, only the morning breeze swept across the wheat, shaking loose beads of dew with a soft, rustling sound.

White Deer Plain, Li Family Fortress.

Two youths were walking slowly through the farmland outside the village.

The lean, capable youth following behind wore a rough black cloth jacket and trousers, with leggings wrapped around his calves. A long spear with a wooden shaft rested across his shoulder.

The youth had dark skin. Whenever he smiled faintly, a mouthful of bright white teeth showed.

That was the mark of someone who had worked in the fields for years.

A farmer's child followed adults into the fields from the time he was little, coming in wind and rain. Sweating three pounds beneath the sun and growing a little darker was only natural.

The one walking in front was noticeably taller. His back was straight, his skin fair, and his features refined. His hair had been casually tied into a topknot.

He wore the same black cloth clothes and leggings, but carried a bow and a saber.

The youth was not exactly handsome. His features were merely refined, but his eyes were especially striking.

The corners of his eyes were long and narrow—the standard Phoenix Eyes. Yet his black pupils seemed like suspended pearls. Anyone who met his gaze could feel the searing chill in them, along with a hidden pressure.

These were called Dragon Eyes, also known as Dragon Eyes. The Guan Ren Jing said: "Dragon Eyes possess a spirit unlike that of the world. Their radiance remains still, like mysterious pearls. Condensed and serene, like autumn stillness and the waters of a cold pool—truly, they are a rare wonder beneath heaven."

Phoenix Eyes with Dragon Eyes was an even rarer physiognomy.

The youth's name was Li Yan, and he was not a native of this world.

When they reached the field ridges, he could not help stroking the ears of wheat, feeling each plump grain beneath his fingers. His eyes narrowed slightly, and the intimidating chill faded away. A smile appeared at the corners of his mouth.

The wheat before him had all been planted by his own hands.

When Li Yan had first come to this world, he had struggled to adjust. But as the brilliantly lit cities of his former life gradually faded from his memories, he had grown accustomed to this way of living.

The earth could hold all things.

He rose with the sun and rested with its setting. The unease and restlessness of his former life had long since been buried beneath the loess soil before him, then scattered by the joy of harvest after harvest.

"Yan-ge."

The dark, skinny youth behind him interrupted his thoughts. Looking around, he said, "Blind Old Three might have already run off. Let's go back."

Li Yan turned his head and glanced at him. "You melonhead, aren't you going to avenge Er Niu?"

"What are you saying?"

The dark youth flushed as though someone had stepped on his tail. Stretching his neck, he said, "Er Niu is my little sister. If I don't avenge her, I, Hei Dan, will pull out a hair from my balls and strangle myself with it!"

"It's just that when the chicken climbs onto its perch, the wolf eats children, and when the sun hangs overhead, the wolf rejoices. We don't go out at night or wander around at noon. How can we find it this early in the morning?"

"You've got one saying after another. Are you planning to take the Recommended Scholar examinations?"

Li Yan cursed him, then looked toward the distant mountains and shook his head. "Blind Old Three isn't an ordinary wolf..."

Wolves had plagued Guanzhong since ancient times, and the trouble had never ceased.

Especially over the past two years, no one knew what had happened in the Qinling Mountains. Vicious wolves often emerged and descended onto the various plains to wreak havoc.

These wolves were larger than before, and even more savage and cunning.

They did not merely attack livestock. They especially liked eating children.

"Chicken climbs onto its perch" referred to dusk, while "the sun hangs overhead" referred to noon.

"When the chicken climbs onto its perch, the wolf eats children; when the sun hangs overhead, the wolf rejoices" meant that wolves most liked to appear during those two hours.

Some might wonder: Nighttime was understandable, but how could wolves dare enter villages and harm people in the middle of the day?

What they did not know was that common folk worked from dawn until dusk. To avoid the fiercest midday sun, they rested at noon—and that was precisely when the wolves appeared.

They were extremely cunning. Taking advantage of adults sleeping at midday, they would quietly pull away the child lying between them. This was called "plucking the garlic shoots."

They would even hide in the wheat fields and imitate a baby's sobs. If children, curious, ventured into the wheat, the wolves would seize them and carry them away.

Blind Old Three was a wolf that had come down from the Qinling Mountains.

It was a full circle thicker than the other wolves.

Over the past two years, every village on White Deer Plain had set traps to guard against wolves. Blind Old Three had just arrived when it fell into one, was shot blind in one eye, and bore a grudge ever after, repeatedly ravaging Li Family Fortress.

It had escaped every encirclement.

From then on, the name Blind Old Three began to spread.

Some said that Blind Old Three was unlike other wolves. It had grown up on Zhongnan Mountain, absorbed the Spiritual Energy of the mountains, and gained supernatural abilities.

Others were terrified enough to build a temple and make offerings to it, hoping it would stop coming to plague the village. Fortunately, the Li clan leader stopped them.

In any case, Blind Old Three had become a particular terror of Li Family Fortress.

Every year around the summer harvest was also when wolf attacks were at their worst.

Er Niu was Hei Dan's little sister. She had just turned two. When her parents went into the fields, they feared leaving her at home was unsafe, so they carried her on their backs while working.

Halfway through their work, they put her down at the edge of the field because it was inconvenient to carry her.

The field's edge was near the Official Road, and many villagers passed by. They thought it would be relatively safe.

Who could have imagined that in the blink of an eye, Blind Old Three would burst out, seize Er Niu in its jaws, and run.

The people of Li Family Fortress had chased after it for several miles with sickles and hoes. But when they found the place, all that remained was a ragged circle of Blood Plate.

Hei Dan's mother had wept as though her heart had been torn from her chest. His father, hot-tempered by nature, had gathered members of the same clan and searched the mountains for several days and nights. Sadly, they found nothing.

Later, some people advised them that she was only a girl, and with the farms busy during the season, the search was eventually called off.

But Hei Dan could not forget. He went to Li Yan for help.

Li Yan also wanted to eliminate this menace, so he thought it over carefully.

He guessed that Blind Old Three was exceptionally cunning. Perhaps, like an army launching a surprise attack, it avoided appearing at night and noon, instead emerging before dawn, when people were sleeping most deeply. Thus, for the past few days, he had taken Hei Dan out two hours early to search.

Yet after several consecutive days, they had not found even a single wolf hair.

Li Yan could not help beginning to doubt his judgment.

As the two spoke, the distant sky had already turned the pale white of a fish's belly. The winding mountains stood silhouetted in darkness, while cooking smoke rose from Li Family Fortress.

"Let's go."

Li Yan pressed a hand against the hilt at his waist and shook his head. "We'll continue tomorrow."

Hei Dan was disappointed, but he nodded.

The children of Guanzhong possessed a stubborn streak. He had already made up his mind: the matter would not be over until Blind Old Three was killed.

The two did not take the main road. Instead, they hurried toward the village along the hillside.

Hei Dan had sneaked out. Before his parents discovered he was gone, he had to climb over the rear wall and sneak back home. Otherwise, if they found out, he could forget about coming out again.

The closer they got to the village, the more dejected Hei Dan became. He did not say a word.

Li Yan glanced at him. "What's wrong?"

Hei Dan muttered, "In a few days, my father's taking me out to work as a wheat reaper."

Li Yan frowned. "You're not harvesting your own fields? Why go elsewhere?"

Hei Dan said, "I heard my father say that last year, a lot of factories opened in Jinmen and Jiangnan. Many young people went there to earn money, and now there aren't enough hands on the various plains."

"This year, several major landowners have already announced that they'll pay good wages. My father wants to take me around and save some money to get me a wife."

Wheat reaping was an ancient profession.

Because of the climate differences across Guanzhong, wheat generally ripened from south to north and from west to east.

As the saying went, "Three wheat harvests cannot match one autumn's growth; three autumn harvests cannot match one wheat harvest's busyness." Whenever Grain in Ear Harvest Begins and the summer wheat harvest arrived, the frantic bustle was scarcely inferior to a battle.

Although drought, heat, and scarce rainfall were normal for Guanzhong's climate at that time, even the Dragon King might sneeze without warning.

Wheat feared rain the most. Once soaked, it easily sprouted or grew moldy.

There was a folk saying: "Harvesting wheat is like fighting a fire—snatch the grain from the Dragon King's jaws."

Thus, whenever this season came to Guanzhong, people could be found everywhere helping others cut wheat in exchange for food. They were called wheat reapers.

In the past, they could not earn much. If the landowner was kindhearted, serving them White Flour Steamed Buns with all his might was enough to make the wheat reapers grateful.

In years of poor harvest, they might not even receive many Mixed Grain Cakes, let alone wages.

Even so, wheat reapers still came in an endless stream.

The reason was simple: if they ate someone else's grain, their own could be saved.

Life was hard. What did selling a bit of muscle matter?

Li Yan knew that Hei Dan was not afraid of hard work. He was afraid that after the summer harvest, Blind Old Three would run elsewhere or disappear into the Qinling Mountains, leaving the matter unresolved.

Thinking of this, he patted Hei Dan's shoulder and said solemnly, "Don't worry. You fed me a chicken, so that counts as a deposit. I'll definitely deal with Blind Old Three!"

"Yan-ge, I believe you!"

Hei Dan nodded seriously.

Across Guanzhong's Eight Hundred Li Qin Chuan, the Knight-errant Spirit had been strong since ancient times.

Even now, Guanzhong Blade Wielders were men of their word.

Li Yan's father had once made a name for himself as a Guanzhong Blade Wielder.

Many people in the village believed that Li Yan would eventually follow in his father's footsteps.

Apparently setting aside his worries, Hei Dan looked toward the distant mountains again. A trace of yearning flashed in his eyes. "I heard the young men who went out to apprentice last year all sent money home before the New Year..."

"Yan-ge, what do you think it looks like beyond those mountains?"

Li Yan snorted. "What could it be? Mountains, in the end. And people."

Before he finished speaking, his expression changed slightly. He suddenly pressed Hei Dan down, sniffed the air, and lowered his voice. "Hei Dan, do you smell anything?"

Hei Dan sniffed as well and said doubtfully, "No."

Li Yan said nothing more. His expression gradually grew solemn.

In the fields and at the edges of the farmland, certain stories circulated with fantastical details—stories of Ghost Obscures Eyes, Spirit Possession, Tiger Auntie, and the like.

There was little entertainment in the village. Only during festivals or the Social Fire Temple Fair would the clans invite an opera troupe from Chang'an City. At such times, people from ten li in every direction would gather.

On ordinary days, beneath the old trees at dusk, the stories told by the village elders became the children's amusement, passed down from generation to generation.

Those stories included princes, kings, generals, and ministers, but most were even more absurd and strange.

Some believed them without question, insisting that such things had happened in a certain village, though they had never witnessed them personally.

Others sneered at them, considering them nothing but jokes.

Li Yan, however, vaguely felt that some of them might actually be true.

The reason was simple. A year earlier, his sense of smell had begun to change. It had become extraordinarily sensitive, and he could even smell things others could not.

For example, at the Land God Temple at the head of the village, he could smell a faint scent of burning incense even when no incense had been lit...

For example, whenever he passed Widow Wang's house in the village, he could smell a certain incense scent, but it carried a fishy, foul reek...

Now, he had smelled another scent.

It was rank and cold, with a hint of blood.

And he had smelled that same fishy stench when they found Er Niu's remains...

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