First Immortal of the Sword

Chapter 42 - The Deathbringer’s Tribulation, the Rejoicing Sword

The Huang Family.

There were only two people within the clan’s great hall—Huang Yunchong and Huang Qianjun.

When Huang Qianjun finished telling his father everything that had happened today, he couldn’t help but feel nervous.

Huang Yunchong sank into a lengthy silence. Then, he burst into laughter.

His gratified, delighted laughter came straight from the heart, and it echoed throughout the hall for quite some time. 

Huang Qianjun instantly relaxed. Only then did he dare ask, “Father, you think I did okay too?”

Huang Yunchong walked right up to him and pounded him on the shoulder, hard. “‘Okay’? You didn’t do okay; you couldn’t have done it any better! You’ve got guts, kid! I’m surprised!”

Huang Qianjun rubbed his aching shoulder and grinned. “Father, I’ve only followed Su Yi for two days, but you were right; I’ve already learned a lot. I feel like I was wasting my life before.” 

“That means you’ve chosen the right person to follow.” Huang Yunchong couldn't help but sigh. “Su Yi is a hidden talent, but he’s sure to reveal his true brilliance and ascend to the heavens sooner or later. If you follow him, you’ll rise to prominence along with him!”

“Father, I didn’t think about any of that,” said Huang Qianjun sheepishly. “I just think that when I spend time with Brother Su, I often feel my horizons expanding.”

Huang Qianjun burst into laughter. “My child, having an attitude like that is for the best! Blind flattery will only make him think less of you, and you’ll only lower yourself. Treating him with sincerity is the best policy!”

He couldn’t help but be delighted.

As the head of the Huang Family, how could he miss the strength of Su Yi’s network or his transcendent methods?

His attainments in medicine made even the famed Wu Guangbin sigh with admiration.

His skill at swordsmithing convinced even Wang Tianyang to call him ‘grandmaster’.

And he even knew how to exorcize ghosts!

Add all that to the mighty figures standing behind him: Fu Shan and the Spiritjade Marchioness, among others….

Su Yi was like a hidden dragon! For his son to serve at his side was a blessing!

“You needn’t worry about Wen Jieyuan’s murder. Between Nie Beihu and Fu Shan, there’s no way Wen Changqing will discover Su Yi’s involvement.” Huang Yunchong smiled. “On the contrary, it’s entirely possible that Wu Ruoqiu’s death and his connection to the Deathbringer’s Gate will implicate the Wen Family. If so, it’ll be a real headache for both Wen Changqing and Family Head Wen Changjing.”

Huang Qianjun couldn’t help but ask, “Father, have you heard of the Deathbringer’s Gate?”

His father paused, as if trying to recall something. “It was about a hundred years ago. The Deathbringer’s Gate was the top heretical faction in the Great Zhou, with vast numbers of disciples spread throughout the entire nation.

“They sacrificed countless innocent lives in the name of cultivating their heretical arts, inviting the wrath of god and man alike. They were universally despised.

“In the end, the imperial family of the Great Zhou sent a group of Earthly Immortals from our number one holy land, the Hidden Dragon Sword Sect, to join forces with the nobility and root them out. It took three years, but in the end, the Deathbringer’s Gate fell, vanishing into thin air.

“That incident was called ‘the Deathbringer’s Tribulation’.

“From that day forth, the Deathbringer’s Gate ceased to exist. Although numerous evildoers survived and scattered throughout the empire, it’s difficult for them to gather in any meaningful way.

“Nowadays, I’m afraid that few people have ever so much as heard of them.”

Huang Qianjun finally understood. “So you’re saying that Wu Ruoqiu was a survivor of the Deathbringer’s Tribulation? Or perhaps one of the remnant’s disciples?”

“Most likely, yes.” Huang Yunchong nodded, then laughed coldly. “The Deathbringer’s Gate has been gone for over a hundred years. There’s no way of knowing just how this heretical faction recovered its vitality.

“But there’s one thing I dare say with certainty: the survivors only dare operate under the cover of darkness and behind closed doors, hiding away like mice for fear of discovery. If found, everyone would unite against them.”

He paused, then continued, “If Wen Changqing has really known about Wu Ruoqiu for years, that’s tantamount to colluding with the survivors of the Deathbringer’s Gate. A crime like that is enough to invite disaster upon the entire Wen Family!”

Huang Qianjun’s eyes shone, and he gleefully rubbed his hands together. “Father, when Fu Shan finds out about this, will he seize the opportunity to teach the Wen Family a lesson?”

Huang Yunchong fell silent for a moment, then shook his head. “In the past, such a discovery would have indeed dealt an enormous blow to the Wen Family, but it’s different now.”

“Why is that?”

“Because the Wen Family is about to have a ‘Grandmaster’s disciple’ among them!” Despite himself, Huang Yunchong’s voice revealed a hint of jealousy.

Not even he could have guessed that Wen Lingzhao would win Zhu Guqing’s favor so shortly after entering Heaven’s Origin Academy, much less become her disciple!

Such a lofty status was enough to intimidate even the city lord.

Waves of emotion coursed through Huang Qianjun’s heart, and he couldn’t calm down.

He finally understood just how weighty the title “Grandmaster’s disciple” really was!”

……

The city lord’s estate.

When he heard Nie Beihu’s report, the scholarly City Lord Fu Shan couldn’t help but nod. 

“You handled this incident well. Wen Changqing and his son knew about Wu Ruoqiu, yet kept it secret. They’ve invited disaster upon their entire family!” Fu Shan laughed coldly.

He naturally knew of the depraved organization “the Deathbringer’s Gate” too. 

“City Lord, shall we seize this opportunity to put the Wen Family in its place?” Nie Beihu whispered, his eyes flashing.

“It’s not the right time.” Fu Shan shook his head. “Young Lord Su already disposed of Wu Ruoqiu, which means we have no witnesses. Besides, a grandmaster’s disciple only just emerged from within their ranks. No matter what, we have to treat them with respect. We can’t be reckless.”

He paused, then asked, “What did Young Lord Su have to say about this?”

Nie Biehu froze. “He actually didn’t say anything about it.”

Fu Shan muttered, “We cannot take this matter into our own hands. Our next step is simply to search the city for Ghoul Worms, that’s all. Remember: once you’ve completed your investigation, you are to report to Young Lord Su.”

“Yes, sir.” Nie Beihu nodded in acknowledgment. 

“Right, there’s something else.” Fu Shan suddenly recalled something. He took out a gold-embossed invitation he’d clearly prepared in advance and passed it to Nie Beihu. “This is an invitation to the Dragon’s Gate Banquet. Please find the time to deliver it to Young Lord Su.”

Nie Beihu accepted it, but he couldn’t help but say, “Sir, given Young Lord Su’s bearing, I’m afraid he’ll disdain to participate in such a competition.”

Fu Shan smiled and shook his head. “Who says I’m requesting his participation? I’ve invited him as a VIP guest. He can spectate and comment on the youths’ martial prowess alongside us.”

Nie Beihu instantly understood; City Lord Fu Shan was planning to use this as an opportunity to bridge the gap between him and Su Yi!

Suddenly, a guard approached and reported, “City Lord, Family Head Wen Changjing and Second Elder Wen Changqing have come requesting an audience.”

“See them in,” said Fu Shan offhandedly, then laughed. “Commander Nie, why don’t you guess why they’re here?” 

Nie Beihu laughed too, then answered without hesitation. “They’re undoubtedly here to absolve themselves of any connection with the Deathbringer’s Gate. After all, if the accusation sticks, disaster might strike at any moment.”

Fu Shan nodded approvingly. “That aside, they’ll most likely strongly request our support in bringing Wu Ruoqiu to justice. After all, they can’t let the death of Wen Changqing’s son go unpunished.”

As expected, when Wen Changjing and Wen Changqing arrived and announced their intentions, it was exactly as Fu Shan expected.

Fu Shan had long since made up his mind. He’d restore their reputation and cooperate with them in their efforts to capture Wu Ruoqiu.

That night, both the city lord’s Old Guard and the Wen Family guards took action, scouring the city for anything suspicious.

This threw the whole city into uproar and attracted an enormous amount of attention.

But none of this had anything to do with Su Yi.

A night breeze blew past, and the moonlight was as clear as water.

Su Yi stood in the courtyard, and after drilling the Pine and Crane Body Refining Technique several times, he raised Mortal Edge and began practicing his sword arts. 

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

His tall, lean figure was suddenly as ethereal as an immortal. His sword moved with him, streaks of sword light scattering like shooting stars, sparks flying when they intercrossed.

He was fast as lightning, a fleeting shadow.

The tranquil night sky rippled like water, as if the longsword were slicing the very moonlight itself. Beneath its gentle glow, an indistinct shadow appeared and disappeared, like a flickering flame. 

Fast! Too fast!

Illusory swords overlapped, and sword light shifted gracefully. Even Su Yi himself looked fleeting and ethereal, difficult to discern. 

This was the “Rejoicing Sword Sutra.”

By fully taking possession of your heroic spirit, you could breathe out a joyous wind!

The essence of this sutra was becoming free and unfettered as the wind, unrestrained and everywhere at once, with no height you could not reach or place you could not go. 

The Rejoicing Sword Sutra only included six moves.

“Pulling Galaxies”, “Plucking Suns and Moons”, “Splitting Mountains and Seas”, “Severing Melancholy”, “Demarcating Purity”, and “Wandering the Ten Directions.” 

The night before, Su Yi had relied on “Pulling Galaxies” to slaughter over a hundred Ghoul Worms in one fell swoop.

This was one of the ultimate sword styles Su Yi had created in his past life. Its sheer power and the profundity of its Great Dao were enough to place it near the top even among Imperial Realm sword styles! 

Unfortunately, due to the limits of his cultivation, the current Su Yi could at most practice the sword sutras’ stances and movements. He couldn’t realize its essence or profundities.

Without its essence, without the Grand Dao or profound truths, it was at best a sword art of the Martial Dao.

In the cultivation world, the secret techniques of the Martial Dao could be divided according to the following basic principle:

Arts were inferior to laws, and laws were inferior to the Dao.

When it came to “magic arts”, “magic” came first and “art” came second.

But in “Daoist magic”, the “Dao” took precedence over “magic”.

The Four Realms of the Martial Dao represented a gradual shedding of mortality, and the martial arts its experts could use had yet to fully extricate themselves from the mundane. At the end of the day, they were merely “arts” or “techniques.”

The techniques of the Martial Dao were graded according to power. There were four classifications: yellow, profound, earth, and heaven.

Yellow grade was at the bottom, while heaven grade was at the top.

Each grade was subdivided further into high, mid, and low.

Ordinarily speaking, Blood Circulation Realm cultivators could at best practice yellow-grade martial arts.

From this, you could infer that Qi Accumulation, Inner Furnace, and Anāsrava cultivators corresponded to the profound, earth, and heaven grades respectively. 

Even if you tossed a profound-grade martial art to a Blood Circulation Realm Cultivator, with their cultivation, they’d have a hard time realizing its full power.

In short, when it came to martial arts, higher-grade martial arts weren’t always better. They had to suit your current cultivation. 

Of course, there had always been a handful of monstrous geniuses who broke these rules and broke past the limits of their cultivation to master higher-level techniques. 

For instance, the Rejoicing Sword Sutra Su Yi was practicing. Although it was merely considered an “art”, if you really tried to appraise it, you’d find it was far beyond ordinary techniques!

Seth's Thoughts

This chapter was a bit of a headache to translate. It should stand on its own, but here’s some cultural background and translation notes for those interested in diving deeper: 

The four tiers described here correspond to the first lines of the “Thousand Character Classic”: 天地玄黄.

The Wikipedia article translates it as “Heaven and Earth, Dark and Yellow.” It’s basically comparing and contrasting heaven and earth. 

The character “玄” is translated as “dark” here, but it as multiple meanings. It’s the same character that webnovels usually translate as “profound”, as well as the “abstruse” in Su Yi’s title and the “Xuan” in his courtesy name.

I’ve decided to stick with “profound” here despite the Wikipedia translation, not because I disagree with it, but because “dark” could be interpreted as “evil” or “malevolent” out of context, and is therefore potentially misleading. 

Next, let’s take a closer look at this passage:

“Arts were inferior to laws, and laws were inferior to the Dao.

When it came to “magic arts”, “magic” came first and “art” came second.

Conversely, in “Daoist magic”, the Dao took precedence over “magic.

This was hard to translate due to a difference in how English and Chinese work. I did my best, but I don’t think it’s possible to convey the exact meaning in English without additional explanations.

Chinese characters are most often parts of words, not words by themselves, and their meaning is context dependant. When picking an English translation, you always have to consider which characters they’re combined with.

But Chinese readers are familiar with the characters as individual yet multi-faceted units of meaning. They can have either a clear, context-specific meaning, or a vague, multi-layered and undefined meaning. What I mean is, by itself and without any context, a character can be any one of its possible meanings, or it can be all of them at once.

English doesn’t really allow for that. It can be layered/open-ended too, but not in that specific way. To translate, I have to pick just one meaning, but it’s a bit of an unfortunate compromise, but there's nothing for it. 

This particular passage is differentiating between and ranking three characters: 术, 法，and 道 in order of profundity.

术 means “art” or “technique.” 

法 means “magic” as in “Daoist magic” or “magician”, but also “method” or “law” depending on context. 

道 means “the Dao”, but also “the path” or the “way”. 

So basically, techniques and artistry are the most superficial, followed by “laws” and “magics”, which represent a higher level of mastery and understanding.

Then, finally, there’s the Dao, which is the deepest and most fundamental of all. 

The three aforementioned characters can combine to create new words, which the author references in the following lines. 

法术=”magic”+”art”=”spell” or “magic art/spell”

道法=”the Dao”+”magic”=Daoist magic. 

In both cases, the character that represents a higher level of mastery comes first.