Chapter 3: Past Events Like Smoke

  "With this, I can avenge myself?" Xun's eyes gleamed as he stared at Changming.

  A pang in his heart, but he steeled himself and shook his head. "No, you can't just live for revenge. Your father once said that a sword is a divine instrument, it absolutely cannot be used as a tool to settle personal scores. Doing so would be an insult to the sword. Do you understand what I'm saying?"

  As he spoke, Changming's eyes turned red, and tears welled up in his eyes, filled with sadness. He slowly got up, walked to the wall, carefully took down the I Ching hexagram chart. Then he took off his hairpin and carefully inserted it into a small hole exposed on the wall. He then turned left half a circle, and then turned right one circle. Suddenly, there was a sound of machinery turning, and after a moment, the wall at the small hole opened up, revealing an empty hidden compartment inside.

  Wang Changming put the hairpin back on his head, inserted his hand, carefully took out a sword, and finally restored the hidden compartment to its original state.

  Sui Feng also stood up and carefully took over the sword. The sword was more than three feet long, with a scabbard made of some unknown material, looking full of ancient simplicity, without any of the earth-shaking momentum in the legend? Sui Feng carefully exerted his strength, and suddenly a sword hum was heard, a golden light illuminating the entire room.

  As the wind blew, he placed the sword under a high candle and observed it carefully. The body of the sword presented a peculiar cypress color, and indeed, as legend had it, there were dense cypress patterns on the sword. Near the hilt, there were two large seal characters "Jun Chun" that resembled cypress patterns. Unlike other swords, these two characters were not engraved but naturally formed during the casting process. In Ou Yezi's words, Jun Chun was originally present between heaven and earth; he simply represented the unmatched power of heaven and earth in the form of a sword. Indeed, as he said, after the sword was cast, the two characters "Jun Chun" appeared on the sword.

  Changming turned around, looking at Su Feng lightly and said: "Your father once said that this sword is the treasure of the Su family, and it will be entrusted to you later. You are still young, don't always have revenge on your mind. Over the years, I've been searching for you, but didn't expect you were in Yangzhou all along. Yangzhou has always been Liu's territory, I'm worried that...

  As the wind passed, his eyes darkened and he said: "Uncle Changming, I think I understand. But I still want to know what happened after my parents passed away? What about that high-ranking person you mentioned who gave guidance? I want to know... Please tell me."

  Changming nodded slightly, responded with a sound, and looked up at the window outside. His eyes fluttered, and he told the story of past events that had long since disappeared like smoke to Sui Feng.

  Changming spoke a lot and his mouth was getting dry, so he took a sip of tea. He sipped again and again, but still couldn't hold back a sigh from escaping his lips. "Later on, the Rui family declined. The Liu family took advantage of the situation and wildly seized the Rui family's assets, and they were also investigating the whereabouts of the Pure Sword. In order to fulfill your father's last wish, I had no choice but to pretend to surrender to the Liu family in desperation, and the Pure Sword has been hidden here by me ever since. The purpose is that one day I can find your whereabouts and entrust it to you."

  Sui Feng also sighed, shrugged his shoulders, as if there was a heavy burden of thousands of tons on him. After a long time, he said: "Why didn't Uncle Changming keep it for himself? With the power of the divine sword, he might still be able to avenge his father. I'm just a weakling with no strength, and I can only make the divine sword collect dust." Although these were facts, when Sui Feng said them out loud, they sounded so melancholic. Changming felt a pang in his heart, thinking that someone so young had already experienced so much wind and rain. But then he immediately negated this thought, thinking that even the best seedlings need to experience some setbacks before they can grow up.

  Chang Ming thought for a moment and said, "Young Master, you must not belittle yourself. You have an extraordinary talent for martial arts, one that is hard to come by. Your father delayed teaching you internal skills because he was afraid that low-level techniques would affect your future development. He had just been thinking of teaching you the family's Analyzing Heaven Technique when this unexpected event occurred. At your current age, it's still not too late to start practicing martial arts."

  As soon as he heard this, his eyes lit up sharply. "So you're going to teach me martial arts?"

  Chang Ming shook his head silently, "No, I've spent half my life roaming the jianghu and learned a lot of miscellaneous things, but there's no profound technique to speak of. If I were to pass it on to you, how would you be able to avenge yourself?"

  The interest that had just been sparked was extinguished by Changming's one sentence. "So you're saying I won't be able to learn martial arts?"

  "Hey, don't be in a rush. For so many years, I've been thinking about this at all times. If I had met you back then, what would I have done? You should know that your father not only has astonishing martial arts skills but also a great reputation on the Jianghu. What's even more famous is his extensive network of connections, almost unmatched by anyone. After our family was defeated and broken, countless martial artists came to investigate the cause and effect. However, due to the Liu family's obstruction, it ultimately ended in nothing. Among your father's friends, the most formidable and renowned one is the current Jianghu Wulin Alliance leader - Hua Jiugong. His 'Return to Heaven' skill is as famous as your father's 'Analyze Heaven' skill, both being top-notch martial arts on the Jianghu. Your father has a decades-long friendship with him. When you arrive, bring the Pure Harmony Sword and seek him out, telling him about all this. He will definitely help you. If you can learn the 'Return to Heaven' skill, then avenging your family will be almost certain."

  "Returning Heaven Technique? Why does this name sound so similar to Father's Analyzing Heaven Technique?" Xun Feng wondered inwardly, but still asked, "Does Uncle Changming know where this Hua Qianbei is?"

  "Hua Qianbei is also one of the few openly acknowledged masters in the Jianghu, and probably the most powerful one. He has long been in semi-retirement from the Jianghu, and I'm not very clear about his specific location either. All I know is that your father once mentioned casually that he lives at the foot of Mount Tai. When you go to the Shandong border area to ask around, you'll probably understand."

  "Isn't Uncle Changming going with me?" Xiangfeng was a bit at a loss, he had never been to such a faraway place before. Alone and unaccompanied for thousands of miles, after all, he was still just a half-grown child, how could he calmly accept it?

  "No," Changming shook his head and said, "If I were to leave suddenly, the Liu family would definitely become suspicious. For your safety, it's better for you to go alone. A good man is not afraid of hardships, there will come a day when he has to venture out on his own. Uncle Changming can't accompany you forever. You've also reached the age where you have to face the storms and rains by yourself. I believe in you, you won't disappoint your father or me!"

  He was stunned for a moment, then lowered his head. His parents were already gone, and no one else would walk side by side with him on the road ahead. Everything left behind except himself, he had no one to rely on. His eyes had been somewhat bewildered, but suddenly became firm as if he had figured something out.

  "Alright! Changming Shu, I'll do it alone then! I must make the world remember the Su family again, remember me. This way, I won't disappoint Father and Mother..." Rang Feng's words were originally bold, but as soon as he mentioned his parents, they softened.

  This appearance looked in Changming's eyes, no matter how he felt sorry. He silently sighed and said softly: "Xiaofeng, the world is treacherous, you must be careful. Remember that having a mind to harm others is not allowed, but being vigilant is necessary! The villainy of petty people and their sinister plots are more dangerous than any kind of extraordinary martial arts in the world. When going out, one relies on friends, can't afford to be petty and weaken your father's reputation for small things."

  Seeing Changming's worried look, Su Feng couldn't help but feel a mix of emotions. She wiped away the tears at the corner of her eyes and said in a firm tone: "Uncle Changming, please don't worry, Mother had told me about these things before. I will know what to do and handle it properly."