Worthy of the Madman's Name

Ji Yuan raced onward in bounding leaps, then, after leaving Wei Wuwei and the others' sight, circled back to Ning'an County.

The howling gale rushing past his ears sounded wonderfully pleasant. Ji Yuan simply untied the ribbon binding his hair and let his long locks stream in the wind.

This era differed from the land of Huaxia in his previous life. Forests and grasses covered the earth, with barely any pollution. Night birds sang in the fields; mountains and plains offered different scenery, while night and day wore entirely different faces.

At a small river in the woods beyond the city, Ji Yuan leaped and rolled as he sped along. Borrowing force from the tip of a little tree by the riverbank, he made a graceful diving leap and plunged into the river shrouded in night with a splash, sending water flying.

Before long, amid a rush of splashing water, Ji Yuan emerged from the surface again. Upon reaching the opposite bank, his legs kicked fiercely beneath the water while he gathered energy in his right palm and slammed it hard into the river.

Bang!

Amid the scattering spray, Ji Yuan shot out of the water and landed on the opposite shore.

"Ha ha ha ha, that felt good!"

His body broke into a run again. He sprang high during his sprint, spun several times in midair, and flung countless droplets away before landing and racing onward. Like a child, he freely played with his martial arts to his heart's content.

Only after running another two li did he circulate the Minor Water Evasion Technique, forcing away the remaining droplets clinging to his body and clothes. It counted as a bath of sorts, washing away the sweat and fatigue from the earlier fight and tension. It was even as though he had stripped a layer of grease from his state of mind. His body and spirit both felt utterly refreshed.

By the time he returned to Ning'an County, the night had already deepened into silence.

Ning'an County had always enjoyed good public order and had never imposed a curfew. Yet it was a small place to begin with. Apart from the occasional temple fair, there was basically no nighttime entertainment, so the nights were naturally quiet.

After entering the city, Ji Yuan disturbed no one and drifted lightly back to Ju'an Pavilion. He glanced at the Sword Intent Scroll hanging before the desk in a corner of the main room, gave up the thought of studying it right then, changed into sleepwear, and fell straight into bed.

The next day was still bright and sunny. After getting dressed and washing up, Ji Yuan sat at the desk in his room like a student filled with reverence and once more observed the Sword Intent Scroll in careful detail.

A simple set of the Four Treasures of the Study sat on the desk. Yin Zhaoxian had given them to him. They were not valuable, but they felt good to use and had clearly been carefully selected.

The Sword Intent Scroll still appeared in his eyes as an arcane work of textual art. Yet Ji Yuan had long since seen through that and found no clues concerning any tomb.

Do I need to soak it in water or burn it?

Ji Yuan took the Sword Intent Scroll down from the wall and laid it on the desk. He touched its paper. It was nothing more than ordinary Xuan paper and could not withstand that sort of torment.

Could it be in the rollers?

With a light stroke of his fingers, one upward and one downward, the two thin wooden rods of the scroll came loose on their own. Ji Yuan picked them up and inspected them carefully, but there was no record of anything inside.

"Could it be in there?"

Ji Yuan gathered strength in his fingers and flicked hard at the end of one wooden roller.

Crack!

The wooden rod split vertically straight down the middle. He looked, examined, felt, and smelled it, but there was nothing unusual. It seemed he still had to search within the contents of the calligraphy scroll itself.

Truthfully, with Ji Yuan's eyesight, he could not see the words in ordinary paper books at all. The Sword Intent Scroll was special because its sword intent ran deep, allowing him to make out its contents.

"Since childhood, I have adored weapons, especially swords. At six, I obtained a wooden sword; at twelve, an iron sword. At twenty, my spirit and will soared. Though I bore no new sword, I myself was peerlessly sharp. A three-foot cold edge shone upon an entire prefecture... Eighty years of life, the long road stretched endlessly. Where Does the Martial Path End? Beyond the innate realm, were there immortals? As my sword fell upon the paper, my heart remained unwilling—unwilling, unwilling..."

After softly reading the hundred-odd words on the Sword Intent Scroll, Ji Yuan gave a faint sigh. He had previously wondered whether the martial arts prodigy who wrote this scroll was still alive. Now, however, he knew that man had already been dead for several decades.

"Ah, what a pity... But you should at least explain yourself clearly!"

As he sighed, Ji Yuan could not help using his fingers in place of a sword, lightly dancing the Wandering Dragon before the Sword Intent Scroll. Yet this absent-minded movement, meant to ease his mood, suddenly stirred something in his heart.

His Sword Momentum shifted. Rather than moving as freely as he had before, he guided the sword intent according to the sequence between the lines and characters of the text.

Though it lacked some of that shortcut-like aura and natural ease, it gained much more killing intent and sharpness. When matched with the life trajectory of Great Hero Zuo as recorded by his age, the revealed sword intent gave him a strange sensation.

Blind as he was, Ji Yuan forcibly relied on memory to gather the sword intent's paths, the times, the place names, and everything else together in his mind.

Holy shit, this is a map?

After pondering it for a long while and finally confirming the point, Ji Yuan did not know whether to laugh or cry.

You made it this difficult. No wonder no one had inherited your legacy even after Great Hero Zuo had been dead for years. You thought only a Heaven-Sent Talent like yourself was qualified to inherit your Way of the Sword?

Fine. Impressive!

Ji Yuan was self-aware enough to know that if he himself were not truly "peerless in talent," the secret of this Sword Intent Scroll might have remained unsolved until it rotted away. Perhaps that peerless sword art would only see daylight again when someone with explosively good luck stumbled upon it by accident. That sort of luck would probably have to rival falling off a cliff and finding a secret manual.

"You truly were worthy of the three words Zuo Kuangtu!"

With this realization, Ji Yuan was completely at ease. At the same time, he became tremendously eager for Zuo Kuangtu's peerless sword art. A single Sword Intent Scroll had allowed him to comprehend the mysteries of the Wandering Dragon. The sword art itself must surely be even more profound!

Knock knock knock...

"Mister Ji, Yin Zhaoxian has come to visit. Might Mister Ji be in?"

Master Yin's familiar voice rose from outside the courtyard. Ji Yuan looked toward the door and realized with surprise that it was already noon.

Outside, Yin Zhaoxian carried two things: one was a food box, and the other a cloth bag. He knew perfectly well that Ji Yuan's mealtimes were extremely punctual, so he had deliberately arrived a little before lunch. He had his wife prepare several dishes she excelled at, along with a jar of huadiao wine, and then made his way to Ju'an Pavilion.

By now, Yin Zhaoxian enjoyed coming here not merely out of the reverence he had felt at first. He found a contented ease in discussing and learning with a friend.

Before long, Ji Yuan personally opened the courtyard gate.

"Master Yin, what is this?"

"Ha ha, today is my day off, so I have a day of leisure. I came to visit Mister Ji. I hope I am not disturbing you?"

Ji Yuan smiled as well. He had already caught the fragrance from within the food box, and it was still steaming. The flavor was surely excellent. He gestured inward.

"Master Yin, please come in!"

The two sat down beside the stone table in the courtyard. Yin Zhaoxian eagerly placed the cloth bag on the table first, then opened it to reveal a wooden chessboard and two boxes of chess pieces.

"I have often seen Mister Ji study the Chess Sutra and Chess Way, yet I have never seen you play chess. Could it be that you have no Opponent for a Game? I specially found this Sandalwood Chessboard and can accompany you in a few games of Hand Talk!"

Hey, hey, hey, hey... I only engage in armchair strategy. It is not that I cannot find anyone to play with—I really do not know how to play chess...

Ji Yuan could not help feeling amused and helpless. It seemed he would have to embarrass himself today.

On the other side, Wei Wuwei still led his people back to Ning'an County.

After all, he was injured and had captured so many fierce criminals. To reduce the chances of mishaps, Wei Wuwei had them bound and escorted to the nearest Ning'an County while sending the coachman riding on horseback to Desheng Prefecture City, instructing the Government Office there and the Wei Family to bring enough men to escort the heavy criminals away.

At present, Great Family Head Wei was staying in an inn, wrapped in the White Tiger Hide he had bought from the Ning'an County Magistrate's Office for a thousand taels, sleeping soundly.