A few days later.
"Young Master! I can see!" Under Qin Wangchuan's guidance, Ye Jianwei had finally grasped the basics of zither techniques. She could now sense everything around her through the echoes of Zither Music.
She sat before the zither with her eyes closed, her long lashes trembling softly. As she spoke, she cautiously stretched out a hand, her fingertips tracing something through the air.
After changing into a new set of clothes, the girl was like an ugly duckling transformed. Though she was still young and immature, she already possessed the beginnings of a lovely face.
Quite pleasing to the eye.
Yet her eyes were not afflicted by injury or illness, but a flaw engraved into the Origin Source of her life.
Even Divine Sense and the like could not be used.
It was an imperfection on the level of Great Dao rules.
In other words, her current state of blindness was precisely "perfect."
No matter how profound the Qin Clan's foundations were, they could not cure someone who was not ill.
"Only outlines, and there are no colors either... Is the world in Young Master's eyes like this too?"
Her voice carried the childlike novelty and delight of discovery.
Qin Wangchuan quietly watched her, a trace of depth far beyond his age flickering through the eyes of the five-year-old child.
He slowly shook his head. "No, this world is far more wondrous than that."
He reached out and pressed down on Ye Jianwei's trembling wrist, guiding her fingertips back toward the zither strings.
"Take it slowly." Qin Wangchuan's voice was soft, yet it carried a reassuring strength. "This is only the beginning. You'll be able to see much more in the future."
Ye Jianwei lifted her head and suddenly grabbed Qin Wangchuan's sleeve. A faint light surfaced in her vacant eyes.
"Then does that mean that, one day, I'll be able to see Young Master's face?"
In her eyes, she could only see the outline of her Young Master, and even that relied on the echoes of Zither Music.
Once the Zither Music faded, the outline would soon vanish as well.
She did not like that.
Qin Wangchuan gave her an affirmative answer. "You will."
After receiving his answer, Ye Jianwei nodded heavily. After murmuring an "Mm," she continued practicing the zither.
Originally, Ye Jianwei had been forced onward through countless setbacks and hardships. At first, Qin Wangchuan had worried that bringing her back to the Qin Clan would affect her growth.
But now, it seemed he had worried for nothing.
The first step into cultivation required drawing qi into the body to temper the hands, feet, mouth, nose, and eyes.
Yet in merely six days, she had cultivated to the "eyes." Once she broke past the limits of her eyes, she would soon enter the first realm, the Five Extremes Realm.
Of course, the Divine Seed given by the Old Ancestor had played no small part. After it was planted in the courtyard, the spiritual energy throughout Wangchuan Pavilion became several times denser than elsewhere.
But this also revealed her comprehension and potential.
Not bad.
He was quite satisfied.
The second realm, however, would be difficult. Building one's foundation required using Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures to grind away at time; no one could escape it.
Naturally, except for certain heaven-defying physiques.
"Then next comes the sword formula."
While Ye Jianwei practiced the zither nearby, Qin Wangchuan was naturally not idle. He was also studying the sword formula.
With tenfold comprehension, he had long since thoroughly digested the book.
He closed his eyes, and the Six-Character Sword Formula surfaced in his mind—"Stand, Sever, Suspend, Fall, Guard, Execute."
These six characters embodied Law Follows Words, each containing supreme Sword Intent.
It was rather laughable. It was not only the zither techniques that he had mastered.
He had already comprehended this sword formula five days ago, yet a question had always lingered in his heart.
"The power of this sword formula is ordinary. The first two characters and the middle two characters can each produce synergy: one Stand and one Sever, one Suspend and one Fall. 'Guard' is for defense, while 'Execute' is for pinpoint killing. It can attack and defend, but does it truly have anything to do with Sword Seals?"
Qin Wangchuan frowned slightly. "Besides, what exactly are Sword Seals...?"
That was right. With his heaven-defying comprehension, merely understanding the sword formula could not satisfy him.
Whether he could further comprehend the Li Clan's Sword Seals was the true key.
He suddenly opened his eyes. A sword qi roughly an inch long condensed at the fingertips of the five-year-old child. The sword qi flowed across his palm, sometimes forming the character "Stand," sometimes changing into "Sever." As the six characters revolved, there was faintly the sound of the Great Dao echoing through the air.
"Young Master?" Ye Jianwei sensed the anomaly, and her Zither Music abruptly stopped.
Though she could not see, she could feel the sharp Sword Intent in the air.
Qin Wangchuan did not answer. He only stared at the sword qi in his palm.
The next instant, the sword qi dispersed.
"Looks like this is the end of the road." He lowered his head and sighed. "A sword formula is merely a method for using sword techniques. At its essence, it has already ceased to be related to the sword itself. How could I comprehend it?"
"Perhaps I took the wrong path."
"It seems I need to find someone who truly understands the sword."
Aside from the Old Ancestor, the one in the Qin Clan with the highest attainments in Sword Dao was not any of the elders, but the Fifth Young Master, Qin Qingzheng.
She was obsessed with swordsmanship. An Emperor Sword had accompanied her birth, and she spent most of her cultivation in seclusion, comprehending the sword. She rarely showed herself.
If he could receive her guidance, perhaps he could glimpse the secret of Sword Seals.
"I'm going out for a while." He stood and glanced at Ye Jianwei. "Keep practicing the zither. There's no need to follow me."
"Yes."
Ye Jianwei nodded in reply, her fingertips once more plucking the strings. Zither Music flowed like running water, blending with the spiritual energy in the courtyard.
--
Qin Wangchuan had only taken a few steps away with his guards when he passed by the Martial Arts Arena.
A charming figure darted out from around the corner of the corridor and blocked his path.
"Oh my, oh my, isn't this our Ninth Brother?"
The newcomer wore a goose-yellow gauze dress, her waist hung with Jade Pendants that jingled and chimed, and she held a Jade Plate in her hand. As her fingers moved, the abacus beads clattered sharply.
Her eyes curved into crescents, and her smile was sweet, yet it carried the sly cunning of a fox.
The Qin Clan's richest Seventh Young Master, the one even elders had to borrow money from—Qin Miaoyan.
Her personality was utterly unlike Qin Zhaoer's.
Qin Wangchuan halted, expressionless. "Does Seventh Sister need something?"
"Of course I do!" Qin Miaoyan leaned closer, lowered her voice, and said mysteriously, "Ninth Brother, your sister here has a fine way to make money. Want to join me?"
"Not interested." Qin Wangchuan moved to go around her.
If it were anyone else, he would at least have listened first. But the person before him was Qin Miaoyan!
Two words summed her up perfectly—crooked merchant!!
She had once swindled a spirit mine out of an enemy lineage in the name of "investment," and even left them feeling grateful to her.
The last time, too, she had come to him after his fifth birthday banquet, claiming she would buy back some congratulatory gifts he had no use for at a high price.
He had given her a Golden Lotus Pearl that could beautify one's appearance in exchange for a thousand bottles of Spirit Marrow.
Only later did he learn that the thing was worth at least fifty thousand bottles of Spirit Marrow!
There were quite a few similar examples.
Though he had received some compensation from her after exposing the truth, he had no desire to discuss any sort of cooperation with this crooked merchant again.
Just as the saying went—strangers get cheated for half, acquaintances get cleaned out completely!
"Hey, hey, hey, don't be in such a hurry to leave!" Qin Miaoyan grabbed his sleeve and said with a beaming smile, "This matter concerns you!"
"?"
"A lot of people are offering high prices for information about you." She blinked. "For example, what you like to eat, what colors you like, where you usually like to go... In short, people are willing to pay a hefty price for every bit of information about you."
Qin Wangchuan frowned. "What do you mean?"
"What else could it mean?" Qin Miaoyan spread her hands. "Your engagement is coming up. Every household wants to learn your preferences in advance so they can cater to them."
"Engagement?" Qin Wangchuan's eyes immediately widened. "Whose engagement?"
"Yours."
"Mine?"
"Yes, yours."
The two stared at each other wide-eyed, and the air froze for a moment.
Qin Wangchuan fell silent for a moment before slowly speaking. "...How come I don't know about my own engagement?"
Before you continue