Ze Tian Ji (Way of Choices)
chapter-381

Chapter 381 – The Spring Radiance of Xunyang City

Translated by: Pipipingu

Edited by: Nora

Continuing south, they met another three waves of assassins. Chen Changsheng continued to kill before collapsing. It repeated like this for just a few times, but every time was extremely dangerous. In the process, the assassin Liu Qing who always hid in the wilderness never appeared, even to the point where Chen Changsheng sometimes suspected whether they had shaken off the assassin or not.

Although they had already met six assassination attempts, compared to the different forces that were currently searching for them in the surroundings of the Tianliang County, it was already the best outcome. Su Li grasped the situation very well, and also knew very clearly as to where the people that wanted to kill him would appear. He knew even better on how to handle the situation, but just where did this skill come from?

The choices of the route were all arranged by Su Li. They never went to places with a lot of people, but it did not mean that they always traveled in the wilderness. Most of the time, they disguised themselves as ordinary travelers, traveling south with the ordinary people on the road. Chen Changsheng admired his arrangements more and more, and began to feel puzzled. One day, when he finally could not hold back his question, he asked why it was like this. Su Li said, “It’s difficult to hide people in the world, but the best place to hide people is amongst people, so traveling with people is the safest, and also the most dangerous. The outcome between the two relies on how devoted you are to it.”

Chen Changsheng also asked, just what did the heart in ‘relies on how devoted you are to it’ refer to, and how to make the judgment. Su Li thought about it and replied with, “Just wait for you to kill as many people as me, and have had as many people try to kill you, and you will naturally develop this ability.” Chen Changsheng thought about it and said that if he needed to be like that to learn it, it was better to not learn it at all.

Regarding the stories and skills for an assassin in the night, Chen Changsheng could not learn it even if he wanted to. He was obviously rather lacking in talent in this area, but his talent in the aspect of the sword began to show its edge with Su Li’s teachings. His grasp of the Intellectual Sword became greater and greater, it was just that his spiritual world could not support itl. His use and control of the Blazing Sword became better and better, but he was obviously still unable to avoid the great price paid for the blazing true essence. However, there were another two Star Condensation experts who were felled by his sword.

With this, he had already succeeded in surpassing cultivation realms five times in total. Also, the five times occurred one after another. His opponents included Xue He, a Divine General expert whose name had been renowned long ago, and a tyrant of the north like Lin Pingyuan.

Right now, he was still a teenager who was not even sixteen.

No one knew whether something like this had occurred in the history of the cultivation world, nor did they know if it was going to occur again. However, at least in the several centuries after Su Li had left the mountain, something like this had never happened. Even he himself could not do it. Of course, this did not mean that Chen Changsheng was stronger than Su Li back then, because there were many specific differences. These differences included how Su Li placed most of his efforts on the Garden of Zhou back then, and that he did not have the chance to undergo so many life-or-death battles with Star Condensation experts one after another. However, Chen Changsheng’s performance was already strong enough, strong to the point where Su Li was emotionally moved, and then felt moved in his heart.

One night, Su Li began to teach Chen Changsheng the third sword style. Chen Changsheng only used the time it took to heat the cold meat soup from the night before to memorize it. Su Li looked at him and sighed emotionally, “You really are suited to learning the sword.”

Chen Changsheng found it rather embarrassing and said, “Senior is flattering me.”

To be suited to learning the sword. This was an extremely high level of praise, let alone the fact that it came out of Su Li’s mouth.

Su Li looked at him and said, “If I didn’t have Qiushan and… to inherit my legacy, perhaps I really would have chosen you.”

Chen Changsheng clasped his hand, “No need, no need, Junior is the successor of the old school of the Orthodoxy, unable to accept a different master.”

Su Li understood Chen Changsheng’s personality. Declining was inevitable and right, just that he declined so fast, without even the slightest hesitance from showing fake sincerity. It still made him rather uncomfortable.

As a result, he analyzed the six battles that Chen Changsheng had fought. He used detailed and accurate numbers and calculations, before finally coming up with a conclusion, “You are just lucky, otherwise you would be dead long ago. What right do you have to be pleased with yourself?”

Chen Changsheng thought about it and could not help but admit that this was so. The most important reason as to why he and Su Li could survive until now was not because of Su Li’s insight, the techniques Su Li had taught or his talent in the path of the sword, but rather luck… along the way, Su Li had already praised his luck, or in other words, his good karma, several times. He said with certainty that since both Chen Changsheng and he were people of great karma, if they traveled together, it would have been difficult to even think about death. He had become slightly numb from how many times that Su Li had said this, and during this time, Chen Changsheng had even already begun to accept that his fate was very good. It just was that he thought how his fate was really was not good at all, which often made him feel great perplexity.

After eating the leftover meat soup from the night before, Chen Changsheng pulled his clothes tightly, and rubbed his cheeks that were pale because he was frail. He began to quietly comprehend the third sword that Su Li had taught him, unwilling to waste even a bit of time. Su Li leaned on the back of the furry deer, looked at the teenager and said nothing for a very long time, before looking to the south and thinking silently.

“Qiushan, a pretty good guy appeared behind you. You must run a little faster, otherwise, you really will be caught up by him.”

The flight through the wilderness and main road finally ended. The two of them had arrived outside Xunyang City. Chen Changsheng gifted the two furry deer to a farmer outside the city and took out silver taels and the dagger. He threatened and bribed the farmer to not reveal any information, and to properly look after the two furry deer. Su Li looked at the scene with a face of ridicule, but he did not say anything.

Xunyang City was the first major city in the north of Tianliang County. The city was bustling and very lively. Su Li and Chen Changsheng disguised themselves as ordinary travelers and snuck into the city soundlessly. They found an inn to live in, and actually were not discovered by anyone. This was the first time Chen Changsheng had slept in a bed after entering the Garden of Zhou. He laid his head on the pillow and began to snore, just like how Su Li slept soundly in the hot springs of the snowy mountain range. He slept for an entire day and night. From this, it could be seen just how great of a mental pressure he was under during the journey, and just how exhausted he had become.

After waking up, Chen Changsheng walked to the window. He looked at the lively street of Xunyang City without saying a word for a very long time, and felt that they could not continue like this, because he really was very tired, very weak—he did not want to continue the journey, and then wait for the assassins and experts to appear wave after wave. He disliked waiting for the unknown, and disliked the feeling. He found Su Li and said, “There have been a lot of people who have come to the Tianliang County. I believe the people of the Mount Li Sword Sect would have already received the news, and since it’s like that, why are we still concealing our tracks?”

Su Li said, “I said, I only trust myself.”

Chen Changsheng said nothing.

On the journey, he saw very clearly that on the surface, Su Li was a very unorganized, or even sometimes loveable Senior, an able person. However, he was actually just like his name, very detached from the world. Su Li did not believe in human nature, did not believe in the will of the people and did not believe in his world. He did not communicate with the world, so he would never ask the world for help.

He had already traveled by himself for centuries.

However, Chen Changsheng did not want to travel like this. He always believed that if he was kind to the world, the world would be kind to him. When he saw the green mountains to be charming, the green mountains would also find him pleasing to look at.

“If we continue like this, we will suffer great losses. All the people we meet will be enemies, without a single helper at all.”

“Where are the helpers?”

“The world is formed from the dark night and the daytime. In the days before, we always traveled in the dark night, so all we saw was the color of the night, and all we met was darkness. However, if we walked under the sun, perhaps we can see sunlight.” Chen Changsheng looked at Su Li and said very seriously, “Why is Senior unwilling to try it?”

Su Li said, “Where did you find this rotten poetic act? I don’t want to use my life to go prove that you’re wrong.”

Chen Changsheng said, “But I really want to prove that Senior is wrong.”

Su Li raised his eyebrows and said while looking at him, “Don’t even think of acting unruly.”

Chen Changsheng asked, “What is acting unruly?”

Su Li was very angry and said, “I know what you’re up to, brat. Don’t forget that this is my life, and my life belongs to me and not the heavens, let alone you!”

“But… isn’t it because of my hard work that Senior is able to live until now?”

Chen Changsheng looked at him earnestly with bright eyes. He seemed very cute, but in Su Li’s eyes, he seemed very repulsive.

Su Li felt his hand go slightly cold, and yelled with a suppressed voice, “You crazy bastard, I…”

Before he had even finished, Chen Changsheng directly walked to the window and used his two hands to push open the window.

In the Xunyang City of late spring, it was filled with noises, and the spring sun shone brightly.

As the window was pushed open, sunlight and the spring breeze flowed into the room, illuminating the gloomy, dark night.

A yell that was clear and bright like the spring radiance resounded in the street of Xunyang City.

“The Junior Martial Uncle of Mount Li, Su Li, is here!”