72: Chapter 72 Master Su, I was wrong~

Even in this deep autumn in the north.

Ye Jingjun faintly saw a few tender green shoots quietly stretching out under the moonlight.

Su Chen casually broke off a peach branch and handed it to Ye Jingjun with a smile.

"You will be able to see peach blossoms once spring arrives."

"Is this... also Sword Qi?"

It was the first time Ye Jingjun had witnessed such a miracle, her mouth agape and unable to close.

In her impression, a sword seemed to be nothing more than a weapon for killing.

Yet Su Chen had used it to save this dying peach tree.

"Yes."

Su Chen nodded.

"This is not just a sword technique, but also the final move of the sword style you are practicing."

"What?"

Ye Jingjun was greatly shocked.

She was naturally clear about the sword style she practiced.

Heartless Sword.

This wasn't even something Ye Yuan had taught her.

In her mind, every move and stance of the Heartless Sword.

Could be simply described with four words.

Cold and deathly silent.

How could it have any relation to this kind of Sword Qi that could bring all things back to life?

"That is where you are mistaken."

Su Chen smiled mysteriously.

"The Heartless Sword has eight forms in total."

"The founder named the eighth form, No Meeting Spring."

"No Meeting... Spring?"

Ye Jingjun repeated the three words over and over, lost in thought.

"The person who created this sword style was, like you, a Female Sword Immortal."

"She and her husband were once the famous Immortal Sword Twin Jades of the Great Ning dynasty."

"Later, the couple accepted an imperial order to go and slay demons."

"They both went to battle, but her husband died in the fight."

"The Female Sword Immortal was overcome with grief, cradling her husband's corpse."

"For those who practice the Heartless Sword, though they appear emotionally detached, once they fall in love, the beloved becomes the practitioner's greatest and most fatal obsession."

"In that instant, she comprehended the eighth form that could restore vitality to all things."

"But even 'No Meeting Spring' could not make her lover's body warm again."

"What happened after?"

Listening to Su Chen's narration, Ye Jingjun seemed to forget herself.

She held her breath and pressed against her slightly aching chest.

Eagerly waiting for him to continue.

"After?"

"The Female Sword Immortal recorded her life's experience in this path."

"When late winter turned to early spring the following year, someone found her."

"She had taken her own life in front of the peach tree in her courtyard."

"She left a suicide note, which read that she did not want to experience another spring without her beloved."

"Thus, to commemorate her, later generations renamed the eighth form of the Heartless Sword—No Meeting Spring."

The night breeze swept through the leaves, carrying Su Chen's melancholy voice into Ye Jingjun's ears.

She suddenly raised her sword again, the Sword Qi sweeping up the fallen leaves all over the ground.

"Great Hero Su... oh no, Master Su!"

"I want to learn this eighth form, could you teach me?"

Su Chen felt a bit helpless.

However, what was gratifying was that he had finally changed from Great Hero to Master.

This title was finally not so awkward.

He shook his head.

"I can teach you, but sword techniques must be practiced one move at a time."

"Practice the first seven forms well first; I will naturally teach you the eighth form one day."

Hearing his words, a burning fighting spirit ignited in the young girl's eyes.

"Let's continue!"

Su Chen knowingly received the move she delivered.

Two currents of Sword Qi collided in the air, creating a significant gust of air.

"I see that what you were practicing earlier must be the third form of the Heartless Sword."

"Since you want to learn so much, I will teach you the fourth form today as well. Watch closely."

Su Chen casually picked up a withered branch and slashed through the void.

A few minutes later.

On the hilltop, the young girl's wails could be heard.

"I'm sorry, Master Su, I was wrong, I'm tired..."

"Please let me go for today!"

On the afternoon of the next day, the carriage finally drove into Donglai Prefecture.

This city was located on the shores of the Yellow Sea and was not as prosperous as the inland areas.

Rather than a prefecture city, it was more like a larger town.

Not only were the city walls low and dilapidated, but the scene inside the city, while slightly better than the villages along the way, also appeared somewhat desolate.

Along the streets, most shops were closed, and pedestrians were scarce.

Everyone looked panicked, walking in a hurry, not daring to get close to others.

The salty, fishy smell of the sea breeze in the city, combined with the foul stench of decaying human bodies, was nauseating.

"I didn't expect the epidemic from the outer counties to have already spread to the prefecture city..."

The carriage driver dropped off Ye Yuan, Ye Jingjun, and the sword at the designated spot and drove back home without even looking back.

In some quiet alley corners, one could occasionally see curled-up corpses covered in scales.

No one cleaned them up, leaving them to be buzzed over by flies and insects.

"Bastards!"

Although Ye Yuan could not see, his powerful divine sense took in the tragic state of the city.

Always hating evil, he could simply not bear to see such a sight.

Especially the corpses of the innocent commoners who had died, causing his chest to heave violently.

He suppressed his anger and headed straight for the Prefectural Governors Residence.

However, the situation at the government office was even more chilling.

The gates were tightly closed, and on the stone steps in front, dozens of sallow, emaciated, and dying commoners lay scattered about.

Some already had scales on their bodies, while others were still groaning in pain.

Obviously, they had contracted the epidemic and had come here for help, only to be turned away.

And while the commoners groaned, from within the high walls of the Prefectural Governors Residence, an indescribable stench wafted out.

The smell did not resemble that of rotting corpses; if one had to describe it, it should be the smell of medicinal herbs mixed with something else.

Ye Yuan's divine sense attempted to enter, only to discover a barrier of not insignificant strength separating the Prefectural Governors Residence from the outside.

As long as he tried to enter, he would be discovered immediately.

His face was livid, his chest heaving violently.

Several times he prepared to step forward and blast open that gate, which symbolized the authority of the government but was nothing more than a facade.

But in the end, he forced himself to hold back.

The identity of a wanted criminal was like an invisible shackle, locking his hands and feet.

As an important former member of the Xuntian Division, having fled here, he had been hunted all the way by the imperial court's lackeys using various methods.

At this moment, he did not doubt for a second that this East Lai government office was likely a trap set for him by the imperial court.

If he were to force his way into the office now, there might be experts inside with cultivation levels exceeding his own.

Not only would he fail to save anyone, but he would also immediately attract pursuers.

Not only would he find himself in a predicament, but the last shred of possible order in East Lai would be completely disrupted.

"Let's go!"

He squeezed the word out through gritted teeth, turned abruptly, and took Ye Jingjun and Su Chen with him.

Under the desperate and numb gazes of the commoners, he turned and left the government office in a sorry state.

At least... he had to fulfill the original promise.

After settling Ye Jingjun down, then he would decide.

They rented a relatively quiet, abandoned courtyard in the west of the city to settle down.

The original owner of the courtyard seemed to have fled in a hurry out of fear of the epidemic, leaving behind some simple furniture covered in dust.

However, this was just convenient for Su Chen, the two, and the sword.