First Immortal of the Sword

Cha Jin had gone out to buy food, but even after all this time, she’d yet to return.

Now, this young man who called himself Liu Hongqi had kicked down his doors and entered. How could Su Yi not understand what was happening?

He sat there as if all of this were perfectly normal, thinking to himself, Using Cha Jin as bait has finally landed me a little shrimp.

Zhou Zhili and Zheng Tianhe were both tense. Within the world of the mundane, they both wielded vast authority, but the Wheel of the Moon Sect was a transcendent faction of cultivators; both the prince and the family head feared them.

Especially since this white-robed young man was one of the sect’s elders!

Liu Hongqi’s calm indifference revealed his prideful air. “I’m just here to settle a private enmity. Once I’m finished, I’ll immediately return to the Great Wei.”

“A private enmity?” Chang Guoke furrowed his brow.

Liu Hongqi stretched out his hand and casually pointed at the still-reclining Su Yi. “Yup. I’m here for that little whelp!”

Zhou Zhili and Zheng Tianhe’s expressions instantly went a bit strange. This guy sure is arrogant!

Chang Gyoke was stunned; it seemed he didn’t quite believe his ears. “You’re saying you came all the way from the Great Wei just to kill Young Lord Su?”

Liu Hongqi responded with a self-deprecating sigh. “Brother Chang, I’ve incurred your ridicule. If that pup hadn’t humiliated my martial niece, how could someone of my status lower himself by making trouble for a brat of the mundane world?”

“.......” Everyone was at a loss for words. Is this modesty? Or disdain?

Or just pride in his position?

“Liu Hongqi, you think too highly of yourself. Who are you to slander someone of Young Lord Su’s caliber?” Chang Guoke snorted coldly, his eyes glinting with icy light.

Liu Hongqi smiled faintly. “I am, of course, well aware that despite his despicable and debased nature, Su Yi has extraordinary abilities. He’s only in the Qi Accumulation Realm, yet he can slay Grandmasters and block a talisman sword. He is indeed a rare genius.

“Any other time, I’m afraid my love of talent would lead me to invite him to continue his cultivation at the Wheel of the Moon Sect.” Liu Hongqi paused, shook his head, and sighed. “It’s a pity, but he shouldn’t have offended my martial niece.”

Chang Guoke was so angry, he couldn’t help but laugh. “Liu Hongqi, setting aside the question of whether you’re even fit to be Young Lord Su’s opponent, so long as I, Chang Guoke, am here, I will not permit you to act wantonly!”

Zhou Zhili and Zheng Tianhe burst into cold laughter as well.

It was true; the Wheel of the Moon Sect’s power was terrifying. However, this was the Great Zhou, not the Great Wei!

Meanwhile, Su Yi just sat there in silence, watching the darkness slowly swallow up the light of the sunset reflected on the pond. The descending darkness was like a slowly unfurling twilight scroll painting.

As for Liu Hongqi, in Su Yi’s eyes, he was already dead. How could he possibly be more interesting than the beauty of the onset of the night?

“I have never fought a battle I’m not confident I can win,” said Liu Hongqi. His expression frosted over. His eyes crackled with lightning and shone with contempt. “I dared come here tonight, so I naturally am fully confident I can succeed. Brother Chang, I urge you not to bring about your own demise.”

Clang! Chang Guoke drew his massive longsword, his tall, stalwart frame emanating terrifying murderous intent.

His voice boomed, “Stop talking nonsense and fight me!”

Liu Hongqi’s eyebrows knit together. He flicked a finger, and….

Whoosh!

A sword glowing like fire flew right towards him, then turned and hovered above the tip of his outstretched finger.

The surface of the blade was covered in flashing, contorted cloud patterns and obscure inscriptions. Brilliant lights flashed and overflowed, and the sword qi was dense and imposing, making Liu Hongqi look like the incarnation of a sword immortal. It was a terrifying sight.

“A talisman sword!” Chang Guoke’s pupils constricted.

This was a treasure forged by an Origin Dao cultivator; a single attack could slay a Martial Dao Grandmaster.

Zhou Zhili and Zheng Tianhe’s expressions changed dramatically too. Even watching from a distance, their hair stood on end; they could sense the potentially fatal threat.

“Last time, my martial nephew, Lu Hao, attempted to use this to slay Su Yi, only for Su Yi to block it. I’ll be curious to see if he can block it this time, too!” said Liu Hongqi, perfectly at ease.

The same talisman sword, in the hands of two different people, could naturally release completely different levels of power.

Liu Hongqi suddenly shouted, his tone imposing and his robes billowing around him. “Chang Guoke, I’ll give you one last chance. Get out of the way and save me the trouble of having to kill you within the Great Zhou’s borders. I’m afraid your death would deal a heavy blow to the Hidden Dragon Sword Sect’s reputation, too.”

“Come on and fight!” Chang Guoke laughed coldly, valiant and at ease, not the least bit afraid. His massive longsword clanged and hummed, ready to strike.

“How many attacks will you need to kill him?” Su Yi asked out of nowhere.

Chang Guoke instantly hesitated, and after thinking it over, he said, “If I go all out, I’m about fifty percent confident I can stop him.”

The threat of the talisman sword was too great; he had to be cautious.

Liu Hongqi burst into laughter. “Don’t think too highly of yourself.”

He seemed completely confident, without the slightest trepidation.

“Even if you go all out, you only have fifty percent confidence…. If you fight him, won’t you damage the covered bridge, the pond, and the surrounding grass and flowers?” As Su Yi spoke, he rose leisurely from his wicker chair. “Step back; I’ll deal with him myself.”

“.....” Everyone fell silent. People killed each other for all sorts of reasons, but this was the first time they’d ever heard of someone attacking to protect the grass and flowers.

But when they thought about it, it seemed rather in character for Su Yi. The things people of his level cared about were often rather…. Unique.

“Heh heh. I’ll kill you with a single swing of my blade. That way, I won’t hurt any of your precious grasses and flowers.” Liu Hongqi laughed, and before the sound finished ringing out, he pointed into the air.

Clang!

The hovering, fiery red sword hummed, then blurred into a streak of crimson light and sliced towards the nearby Su Yi.

As it flew, it left a long, blazing streak of light in its wake, dazzlingly radiant.

It was just too fast! It shot through the air and towards its target, incomparably sharp. Its aura alone was bone-piercingly sharp and terrifying; it pricked at the onlookers’ eyes, and their hair stood on end.

“Letting someone like you wield that sword is no different from desecrating a divine treasure.” Su Yi sighed, and his sleeves flew back as his hands flowed through the air. His right hand embraced yang, his left carried yin, like a complete cycle of Tai Chi, of ultimate polarity. His movements were smooth and unhurried as a swallow skimming the water.

A formless power born of true essence condensed and surged into being, slowly circulating under the guidance of Su Yi’s hands.

Whoosh!

The talisman sword streaking through the air was sharp and despotic, with the power to sever mountains and split rivers. It could take the head of even a Grandmaster.

But when it drew near Su Yi, a formless power suppressed it, and it instantly plummeted down to earth like a shooting star. The ground shook violently upon impact.

It was like a fish falling into the ice; it quickly froze, completely suppressed.

Liu Hongqi’s pupils constricted, and he shouted, “Activate!”

The inscriptions and cloud markings on the red flying sword’s surface burst with searing light. Its force increased explosively, as if it were trying to break free.

Su Yi neither smiled nor frowned; his expression was tranquil as ever. Only his hands intercrossed, harmonious as the balance of Yin and Yang. He casually pressed downward.

The still-struggling red sword was instantly suppressed in mid-air. It hovered before Su Yi, suspended in place and peaceful save for relentless mournful wails.

As they took in this mysterious and unbelievable scene, Chang Guoke, Zhou Zhili, and Zheng Tianhe all stared with slackened jaws and widened eyes.

How miraculous a power was this, to so easily suppress a talisman sword an Origin Dao cultivator had given his all to create?

Splurt!

Not far away, Liu Hongqi coughed up blood, and his complexion was now somewhat pallid. His connection to the soul power he’d imbued into the red flying sword was now severed, resulting in a backlash.

“Damn this guy! How could he possibly be in the Qi Accumulation Realm?” Liu Hongqi was shocked and angry; he could no longer maintain his cool, and waves of astonishment coursed through his heart.

It was then that Su Yi reached out and seized the flying sword. He looked it over, then said with a sigh, “The materials are extraordinary, but the forging ritual was ludicrously coarse. What a waste of high-quality materials.”

He couldn’t help but find it a pity. Had he forged the sword, he could have made it exponentially stronger.

Alas, the talisman sword wasn’t a true flying sword; he couldn’t reforge or revamp it. Even if he melted it down, it’d result in nothing but scrap metal.

Suddenly, Liu Hongqi drew the sword at his waist and charged.

His robes were whiter than snow, and his entire third-level Grandmaster cultivation was circulating through him. His aura was vast, far grander than mundane martial artists of the same cultivation.

This was an expert trained in the Wheel of the Moon Sect, a sect of cultivators who transcended the mundane. All of them had far firmer foundations and more terrifying strength than ordinary martial artists of the same level.

Someone like Liu Hongqi could even slay mundane experts of higher cultivations with ease.

Whoosh!

Liu Hongqi’s longsword arced like a rainbow, the sword qi swift and graceful. Its murderous energy ran rampant, domineering and unparalleled.

Now that he’d realized how strong Su Yi was, he held nothing back; this was his full power.

Zheng Tianhe’s back was drenched in sweat.

Liu Hongqi was no longer using the talisman sword, but although he too was a third-level Grandmaster, the power of that swing alone was enough to strike terror and despair into his heart!

Too terrifying!

Is this the power of a Wheel of the Moon Sect elder?

But in response, Su Yi merely stretched out his right hand and casually clamped his fingers together.

A moment later, Liu Hongqi’s sword was trapped between his pointer and middle fingers.

Everyone fell silent.

That attack had all the irrepressible force of lightning, but he actually caught it between his fingers!?

That sword qi was so terrifying, but Su Yi collapsed it easily, barehanded! He doesn’t even have any marks on his skin!

“Is that all you’ve got?” Su Yi’s eyes flashed with a hint of disdain.

Quenching his acupoints until they achieved full spiritual awakening had given him terrifying foundations in addition to helping him step into the mid-stage Qi Accumulation Realm. This level of power could no longer threaten him.

Remember, he fought the Jade-Eyed Crimson Flamebeast before he broke through. Even then, he could suppress it barehanded!

And the Jade-Eyed Crimson Flamebeast was a rare and mighty spirit beast on par with a fifth-level Grandmaster!

By now, Liu Hongqi’s expression had changed dramatically. He was now fully aware that the situation looked bleak. Almost immediately, he chose to abandon his sword and flee.

Su Yi had only attacked twice, but he effortlessly suppressed both the talisman sword and Liu Hongqi’s full-force attack, with power to spare. Both instances came as a huge shock, striking Liu Hongqi’s psyche like massive hammers. His pride, confidence, and self-respect shattered into pieces!

How could he fail to realize that this time, he’d really kicked an iron board?

Even if he were more confused, more stunned, more uncertain, all he could do now was run in hopes of saving his life!

“You’re running away, just like that? Aren’t inheritors of the Wheel of the Moon Sect supposed to have a bit more character?”

As Su Yi’s indifferent voice rang out, his wrists shifted, and he flung the sword trapped between his fingers.

This sword had once belonged to Liu Hongqi. Now, it shot through the air like a fiery beam of light.

Splurt!

Liu Hongqi had already fled over a thousand feet and was in the process of climbing over the walls when the sword struck him from behind, piercing right through him.

Seth's Thoughts

The description of Su Yi’s movements is perhaps a bit difficult to understand. First, the part about “embracing Yang and carrying Yin” comes from Laozi. The link translates the full quote as “The ten thousand things carry yin and embrace yang. They achieve harmony by combing these forces." In short, the author is basically just saying his movements are really smooth and harmonious.

Swallow Skimming the Water is a Tai Chi move. I am not an expert on the subject, but there are both barehanded and armed versions. Su Yi isn’t necessarily using this specific move, though; the text is clearly using the swallow as a simile.