Li Qiuran had left, slipping away quietly the night before.
Heartless woman!
When Zhang Qingyuan woke, he discovered that the person who had slept beside the fire was gone, without so much as a letter.
A few days ago, he had left without saying goodbye. Today, someone had done the same to him.
But we got along so well last night.
I did pretty well. After that heartfelt confession, I really felt her attitude toward me change.
Even with Chu Liuxiang and Duan Zhengchun backing me up, I couldn't win her over?
Zhang Qingyuan sat up and pondered. No, those words definitely had an effect.
He looked at Baolai grazing nearby and scolded him. "What good are you? You couldn't even keep an eye on a little mare!"
Baolai raised his head and looked at his master, failed to understand what he meant, and went back to grazing.
Zhang Qingyuan sighed, feeling helpless as he thought it over.
How could it be easy to move a woman who had fled alone and endured slander for so long? Take it slowly.
In the jianghu, beauty was a crime, possessing treasures was a crime, and weakness was a crime. There was still a heavy burden to bear and a long road ahead.
He found a stream, washed his face, mounted Baolai, and continued toward the Taiyin Dao Palace.
The Taiyin Dao Palace was a Daoist inheritance of the Taiqing lineage, one of the Three Pure Ones.
Eight days later, Zhang Qingyuan officially entered Qi Prefecture.
Qi Prefecture boasted vast lands and abundant resources, its gifted people nurtured by a blessed land.
Inside Jing'an City, Zhang Qingyuan led his horse down the street.
With his straight, tall figure and handsome face, it had to be said that his looks drew quite a few passersby to stop and watch as he walked down the street.
Anyone would have been unable to resist a word of praise:
"What a handsome young Daoist."
Zhang Qingyuan strode along with his head held high. Some bold women even approached him of their own accord, begging him to tell their fortunes.
Fortune-telling was not the point. They mainly wanted to get close to him.
Zhang Qingyuan obliged every request. Although he had never formally studied fortune-telling, he had read about the Eight Trigrams and the Book of Changes.
Even if the fortune isn't accurate, it won't do any harm.
As far as he was concerned, all he had to do was say good things.
Coupled with his eloquence, this often drew peals of laughter from the young women and young married women having their fortunes told.
Two hours later, Zhang Qingyuan arrived at an inn.
He booked a room and tethered his horse.
There was no other reason, really. It was mealtime.
When traveling away from home, the last thing one should mistreat was one's stomach.
He had only chosen this inn after asking many people in Jing'an City. It had a good reputation, tasty food, and comfortable lodgings.
He left his room and went down to the first-floor hall. More than a dozen tables stood there, and the hall was fairly crowded, mostly with people of the jianghu.
After ordering a few dishes, Zhang Qingyuan sat at his table, eating while listening to these people of the jianghu chat.
In these times, there were no newspapers or Weibo. If he wanted to learn anything, these wandering martial artists were a very important source of news.
Three burly men sat at the table in the very center, each carrying a weapon.
"Ah, the jianghu hasn't been peaceful lately."
"Tell me about it. Over in Nanyang Commandery, ever since that little thief got the Starlight Sword, who knows where he's fled after all these days.
"If I saw him, I'd definitely snatch that Starlight Sword from his hands."
"You? Give it a rest. Your martial arts aren't even good enough to beat me. That little thief defeated the Green Mountain Sect's sect leader and the Mount Hua Sect's eldest disciple in succession. Even the young master of Hidden Sword Manor was no match for him.
"With your abilities, you probably wouldn't last three moves against him."
The man whose boasting had been exposed flushed crimson, but stubbornly insisted, "That's because he hasn't met me. If you don't believe me, find him and see whether I can take the Starlight Sword."
Listening to their argument, Zhang Qingyuan took a sip of wine.
So the peerless divine sword that appeared in Nanyang Commandery is called the Starlight Sword. I wonder whether Ling'er found her father.
Since the Starlight Sword already has an owner, if Ling'er is safe, she should have headed home by now.
Even Li Xiaodong was no match for him. It seems this Starlight Sword Master's martial arts are quite formidable.
"Haha, anyone can boast."
At that moment, guests at another table spoke up. Their clothes were rather more sumptuous than those of the three gallant men, and looked like some sect's uniforms.
"What did you say!" The burly man slammed the table and glared.
The man mocking him was in his thirties. He sneered. "The Starlight Sword was the weapon used by the Starlight Sword Master, whose name shook the world a hundred years ago. The sword case also contained the Starlight Swordsmanship.
"That little thief is named Yang Chen, the illegitimate son of Hero Yang, the lord of East Sea City.
"A year ago, he returned to East Sea City to demand an explanation on his mother's behalf. Even Hero Yang was no match for him.
"Now that he's obtained the Starlight Sword, he's practically a tiger given wings.
"What will you fight him with? That broken sword beside you?"
"You..." The burly man was left speechless by the retort. He had only been boasting. Why take it seriously?
The burly man stammered, feeling that he had lost face.
"Is there really no one who can deal with that little thief?"
"No, I think dealing with him would still require a Grandmaster to take the field.
"Nine mountains, seven temples, five Daoist lineages; four manors, three swords, two blades.
"Demon Venerable, Holy Cult, Eastern Tower Lord; six sages and eight immortals watch the ocean tides."
The middle-aged man recited a verse. Zhang Qingyuan understood that he was referring to the jianghu's top powers.
During his time wandering the jianghu, he had come to recognize quite a few of its major powers.
The nine mountains referred to the nine great famous mountains. Besides the Five Sacred Mountains, there were Kunlun, Mount Shu, Mount Emei, and Mount Kongtong. Each of these nine treasured mountains housed a sect, and every one of their sect leaders possessed Grandmaster-level strength.
The seven temples referred to seven Buddhist temples: Shaolin Temple, Jing'an Temple, Heavenly Dragon Temple, Guanyin Temple, White Horse Temple, Manjushri Monastery, and the Great Compassion Chan Monastery in the capital.
Led by Shaolin, each of these seven temples had a Grandmaster-level eminent monk presiding over it. Shaolin in particular had five Grandmaster-level eminent monks known to the public.
The five Daoist lineages referred to five Daoist institutions: Dragon Tiger Mountain in Guangxi, Taiyi Temple in Kunlun, Pure Yang Palace in Dong Prefecture, Shangqing Temple in Nanming, and the Taiyin Dao Palace, where Zhang Qingyuan was now headed.
As for the four manors, those were the Four Great Mountain Manors. The three swords were the three supreme swordsmen of the age: the Sword God, Sword Sage, and Sword Immortal. The two blades were the Blade Emperor of the Western Regions and the Blade King of the Central Plains.
The Demon Venerable was the lord of the Kunlun Demon Domain, the Holy Cult represented the Spirit Terrace Demon Cult, and the Eastern Heretic Lord was the tower lord of Eastern Fragrance Tower, a major assassin organization in the jianghu.
As for the final line about six sages and eight immortals, it referred to the six sages of the jianghu and the eight immortals overseas.
The six sages of the jianghu were the Beggar Sect's leader, the Nanli Sacred Flame Cult's leader, the Clear Wind Sword Master, the commander of the Brocade Guard, the greatest expert of the imperial palace, and Hero Yang Jun of the East Sea.
There were also those final eight experts living in seclusion overseas, who called themselves the Eight Immortals.
Zhang Qingyuan had only understood it after hearing it several times. Great Qian was larger than any dynasty in his previous life, and talents emerged in endless succession in its jianghu as well.
Every expert wanted to win a title, and so this poem had come into being.
If the Heavenly Yin Mysterious Maiden Pavilion had not been destroyed, the five Daoist lineages would probably have been six.
At that thought, it suddenly occurred to him: if his master had not been such a homebody and had wandered the jianghu more often, might he have won a title for himself too?
It was not impossible. His master had devoted his life to studying martial arts. Although he had never ventured into the jianghu, Zhang Qingyuan had tested them on his behalf.
With the old Daoist's strength, he was at least at the Grandmaster level.
Unfortunately, that technical homebody had no interest in saving the world. He only wanted to hide at home and conduct research.
In the end, Three Purities Temple remained obscure in the jianghu, and his senior brothers had gone their separate ways.
"Without a Grandmaster stepping forward, the likes of you? Heh."
The middle-aged man took a sip of wine and continued, "Actually, reaching heaven in a single step is simple enough."
"How is it simple?"
"You all know the Bamboo-Green Demoness, the Mysterious Maiden Pavilion's sole surviving seedling, don't you? Just capture her and obtain the Heavenly Yin Mysterious Maiden Art, and perhaps you'll be the next Grandmaster."
"Hahaha..."
These words drew laughter from everyone. Zhang Qingyuan's expression darkened.
The joke was not funny. After all, he had already laid bare his feelings to her, and she had not said no.
So, rounding things off, Li Qiuran already counted as his girlfriend.
Who would be happy to hear other people make jokes about his girlfriend?
But before he could speak, someone else said, "Hey, have you heard?"
"What?"
"A few days ago, the master of Cloud Dust Manor led his disciples to intercept and kill Li Qiuran, but she slaughtered everyone who came to kill her, alone with a single sword."
"How could we not have heard? It's already spread all over the jianghu. Cloud Dust Manor's master was no weakling, and he brought more than thirty disciples, yet not one of them returned. The young manor master has already been crippled. Now Cloud Dust Manor will probably be erased from the jianghu."
"Then doesn't that mean the Bamboo-Green Demoness Li Qiuran's martial arts are no weaker than Yang Chen's after he obtained the Starlight Sword?
"From now on, the Heavenly Yin Mysterious Maiden Art will probably become an extravagant dream too."
"I don't think so."
"What insight do you have, brother?"
"To conquer a woman, you don't rely on martial strength. You rely on love.
"If anyone makes Li Qiuran fall in love with him, the Heavenly Yin Mysterious Maiden Art will be his for the taking."
"That's easy to say. The Bamboo Green Fairy is proud and unmatched in her cold beauty. Who could catch her eye?"
"What if she happens to like someone like me?"
"Pah! I could just as well say she likes me."
"Ahem..."
As they argued, Zhang Qingyuan cleared his throat.
Everyone turned to look at him.
Zhang Qingyuan said solemnly, "Gentlemen, don't make jokes about that woman."
"Young Daoist, who are you?"
"To tell you the truth, I'm Li Qiuran's boyfriend, her future fiancé."
When Zhang Qingyuan finished speaking, everyone in the room froze.
The room instantly fell silent. They remained stunned for about three seconds...
"Pfft!"
"This young Daoist looks pretty, but his dreams are even prettier!"
"Hahaha... He actually said he's Li Qiuran's fiancé. That's the funniest joke I've heard all year."
Zhang Qingyuan felt very awkward. He was being mocked.
Actually, it was not their fault. His saying that was like someone on Earth claiming to be Liu Yifei's husband. No one would believe it.