Chapter 140: Jingliu: I Can't Beat Him, But I Can Beat You
"You have witnessed a sword strike forged a thousand times over. Now, Yanqing, will you face death as a swordsman should and receive one of my own?"
Jingliu re-gripped the hilt of her blade, the chilling tip now aimed squarely at Yanqing.
Oh, this was bad. Fine beads of cold sweat instantly materialized on the young swordsman's forehead.
Yanqing's mind reeled. Eh? No, wait, why is she pointing that at me?
A cold, frustrated voice cut through the air. "I can't beat him, but surely, I can beat you?"
With her blindfold gone, Jingliu's uncovered eyes locked onto Yanqing, their direct gaze carrying an immense, suffocating pressure. The situation was a world away from the sanitized stories in a game; Yanqing knew with dreadful certainty that the woman before him was his grandmaster.
He might not… he probably wouldn't be able to take this strike.
Don't take it.
Absolutely do not take it.
Absolutely, positively, do not take it.
Reason screamed frantically inside his skull, a desperate, panicked alarm.
However… Yanqing still took a deep, shuddering breath. He took a sharp step forward, raised his own blade, and settled into a defensive stance.
"Good courage."
A flicker of appreciation flashed in Jingliu's cold eyes. He was, without a doubt, a grand-disciple of her lineage. And… compared to Jing Yuan, this boy's talent was far more akin to her own.
The next second, Jingliu's figure moved, launching into the air with the grace of a startled swan.
"Let this round of moonlight illuminate all rivers."
Compared to the world-shattering cataclysm of her battle with Leon, this felt more like a sparring move, a demonstration for a student. But even so, the pressure it brought to bear on Yanqing was nothing short of monumental.
Yanqing let out a sharp cry, pouring every ounce of his life's training, his spirit, and his energy into a single, desperate sword strike. He swung his blade upwards, a defiant counter-current against an overwhelming tide.
Clang—!
A deafening shriek of metal on metal echoed through the ruined landscape. Two distinct shades of ice-blue sword light clashed with ferocious intensity, grinding against one another before annihilating each other in a flash of cold energy.
The webbing between Yanqing's thumb and forefinger split open, and a surge of rebellious qi roiled through his meridians. He staggered, barely able to keep his footing, but he had… ultimately, he had taken it.
As the last vestiges of sword light dissipated, he leaned heavily on his own blade, gasping for breath. A deep relief at having survived mingled with a dizzying, unbelievable joy. I… I took Grandmaster's sword strike?
When he finally managed to look up, she was gone. Only Jingliu's clear, cold voice remained, drifting on the wind.
"I'll be taking those records you found. Thank you, little brother."
"Consider this strike a token of my gratitude. Our fates are deeply intertwined; we will… meet again someday."
Her voice carried an unmistakable hint of cheerfulness, as if all her prior frustration had been thoroughly vented at his expense.
Yanqing didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
Moments later, a golden figure landed beside him like a flash of lightning.
"Yanqing!" Jing Yuan's voice held a rare, sharp urgency. "Are you alright?!"
Seeing his beloved disciple disheveled but fundamentally unharmed, the tension that had gripped the general's heart finally began to ease. Immediately, his gaze swept across the surrounding battlefield, taking in the devastation. The ruins looked as if they had been savaged by a natural disaster—everything was coated in a thick layer of frost, the ground was crisscrossed with deep ravines, and the lingering sword intent in the air was so sharp it stung his skin.
His brows furrowed deeply.
"General, Yanqing is fine," the young man said, shaking his head as he tried to straighten his back.
Soon, nearby Cloud Knights, having heard the commotion, arrived to investigate the scene. Jing Yuan issued a few brief instructions for the cleanup, then departed the chaotic site with Yanqing in tow.
The two of them returned to the quiet sanctum of the Seat of Divine Foresight.
"Yanqing…"
Jing Yuan's voice had returned to its usual measured composure. "Tell me, in detail, what just happened."
"Yes, General." Yanqing nodded, quickly organizing his thoughts. "I met Grandmaster."
"Grandmaster?" Jing Yuan's eyebrows raised slightly, a flicker of surprise in his eyes. "You already know that Jingliu is my mentor? Did she tell you herself?"
He was genuinely taken aback. According to his understanding of his master, Jingliu would never actively reveal her connection to him. At most… she would simply state her name was Jingliu.
"It wasn't Grandmaster who told me…" Yanqing quickly clarified. "It was another person… Leon. He seems to be a Trailblazer from the Astral Express?"
"Leon…" Jing Yuan repeated the name softly, his eyes shifting as he processed the information.
He was, of course, familiar with the name. After the Astral Express had arrived at the Xianzhou Luofu, he had ordered a basic background check on all its crew members. The file on Leon identified him as a Trailblazer who had boarded at Herta Space Station. His profile indicated he was an active blogger, often sharing lighthearted or humorous anecdotes about his daily life on the Express, and had even adapted his experiences on the space station into a game.
However, the Trailblazers who had arrived with the Sky-Faring Commission had mentioned that Leon also came to the Luofu, but he wasn't traveling with them. He was with… other friends?
But hadn't Yanqing just said that this was the first time Jingliu and Leon had met?
Yanqing then recounted the entire story, from their initial encounter to the tale Leon had told about the "Fortune Teller and the High-Cloud Quintet."
As Yanqing narrated, Jing Yuan's expression grew progressively more complex.
That story… it was too precise. It was like an invisible arrow aimed directly at the core paradoxes and deepest regrets that defined the destinies of the five of them. If there had truly been such a "fortune teller" back then, their individual reactions would probably have been exactly as the story described.
It was just a pity that the final outcome had been so completely misaligned with the initial "prophecy," leaving behind nothing but bitter irony and lingering pain.
"General…" Yanqing finished the first part of his tale, unable to resist asking, "Did a fortune teller really say those words to you back then?"
"That… naturally did not happen." Jing Yuan fell silent for a moment before slowly shaking his head, a fresh wave of melancholy rising in his heart.
No wonder his master had lost control of her emotions, nearly succumbing to the Mara. That story was truly too cruel. It was like a blunt knife sawing at flesh, precisely scraping away at old wounds that had scabbed over but never truly healed. Even he, listening to it secondhand, couldn't help but feel old memories stirring.
"So, Jingliu was enraged by him, nearly fell into a Mara-Struck state, and then they had a massive fight?" Jing Yuan collected himself and continued his inquiry. "The other party wasn't injured, was he?"
"No… not injured."
Hearing General Jing Yuan ask if Leon was injured, the corner of Yanqing's mouth couldn't help but twitch. General, I think you've got the relative strength of the two parties completely backward.
That Trailblazer was far too strong; Yanqing suspected Leon hadn't even used his full power. There was no other explanation for how utterly effortless he had seemed during the entire confrontation.
"In fact, General…" Yanqing chose his words carefully, his face still showing a trace of lingering shock. "That Trailblazer's strength… is unfathomable. Grandmaster… was not his opponent."
Hearing this, Jing Yuan was startled. As her direct disciple, he knew Jingliu's strength better than anyone. His master was no match for that Trailblazer? The man actually possessed such terrifying power?
Could he be a new Emanator of some Trailblaze Aeon?
"Indeed…" Yanqing nodded affirmatively, then proceeded to recount everything that happened afterward, including Leon's core summary of the High-Cloud Quintet, which he repeated verbatim.
The young man's memory was excellent; he reproduced Leon's words almost perfectly.
[Inorin's Note:
Enjoying the story? Dropping a quick review, comment, or Power Stone means the world to me!
Want to read ahead on our official home, or unlock 50 advanced chapters (plus an Ad-Free experience) to feed your addiction? Help keep this shameless translator alive here:
(P.S. Replace the [.] with a regular dot . to use the links!)
🌐 Official Website: elysianreads[.]com
✨ Patreon (50 Advanced Chapters & Ad-Free): patreon[.]com/InorinTL
☕ Ko-fi (Support / Sponsor): ko-fi[.]com/InorinTL
Thank you so much for reading and keeping this project alive!]