The streets were crowded, Hua Qian Gu ran everywhere, everything she saw seemed interesting. Jugglers, female singers, heroes teaching bullies a lesson, street sellers, even the basket weavers and auntie bargainers, she watched them for a long time.
They rested at an inn, while still asleep at night, Teacher woke her up and threw her into a graveyard beside a mountain to practice. She caught a few evil spirits and put them into a bag, then sat against a tombstone and slept until dawn.
The Martial Arts Tournament already began when they arrived. She was used to seeing flying swords and mystic arts conjuring up magic, now watching sabers and swords swinging back and forth from the martial arts sects, her enthusiasm waned, she yawned several times.
This was a tournament to select the leader of the martial arts world so many fighters tried to cheat and used hidden weapons. Hua Qian Gu was eager to go up onto the podium but Teacher forbid her, hence she had to find another way to amuse herself. She nominated herself as the judge, whenever the fighters used poison or darts, she secretly destroyed everything.
So this Martial Arts Tournament had the least number of injuries, was the most transparent, most honest of all the tournaments. The elders who were widely respected, with their white beards and white hair, all thought happily: The waves really do push forward, the younger generation is much better!
The leader of the martial arts world finally appeared. Hua Qian Gu already saw him teaching the bullies a lesson in the streets, a famous young man named Wang Xi Ri.
The unmarried and married girls from the martial arts sects eagerly gossiped about Wang Xi Ri’s background as followed:
Wang Xi Ri has been extremely impressive, having been born into a poor peasant family, his ancestor Miao Hong toted a hoe on his shoulder to conquer the world. Accidentally rescuing a Beggar Clan’s disciple who fell down the mountain after being chase by an old, yellow dog, the naive had the luck of the naive, the sky fell into his laps, Heaven allowed him to find the legendary Ni Tian Shen sword and a manual on cultivating internal energy. He practiced and became an excellent swordsman, unrivaled in the world, spending his days in careless wandering, hahaha!
The literary version was as followed:
Wang Xi Ri was a handsome youth who held a legendary sword that was nine feet long. He was generous, helping everyone. His legendary Ni Tian Shen sword can lengthen on a whim, to the maximum of nine feet, it was said the Ni Tian Shen sword could kill without spilling a drop of blood or cause any pain. It was the most brilliant, most beautiful but also most merciful sword. When the Ni Tian Shen sword reached its maximum power, heaven and earth would be discolored, snowflakes like goose feathers would fall. He was an immortal, a deity, a god. No one had ever seen him angry, no one had ever seen him cry, he always seemed aloof with a touch of sadness, like a pure crystal lotus blooming along the edge of Mount Tian, breaking hearts everywhere (more than 10,000 unnecessary words were omitted)……
Hua Qian Gu narrowed her eyes and laughed, at the same time covering her ears to block out the screams from thousands of flirty girls nearby.
She did not think much of his ability, but he seemed capable enough.
She did not think much of his looks, but he looked well enough.
That was how a hero should be, a representative of justice, an idol in the hearts of the girls.
"Oh, that's it, there's nothing else to see. Teacher, let's go!"
The two of them were about to leave when Wang Xi Ri suddenly came up, paid respect and said: "Miss, thank you for saving me!" He was almost poisoned several times, thankfully she helped him.
Hua Qian Gu was surprised and her mouth dropped open: "Oh, Heroic Master, I can't believe you could tell! That's great, that's great, it seems you're the real deal."
His martial arts were good, plus he was eager to help the weak, completely devoted to a righteous cause. However, he was too honest, even a little naive, being the leader of the martial arts world might not suit him.
Wang Xi Ri saw that she was young but exceptionally wise, the man standing next to her seemed ordinary but his serene eyes showed that he must be an important person.
"I saw the two of you yesterday, this can be considered as fate. If you don't mind, can you come to my house for a visit?"
Hua Qian Gu snickered and was about to agree, but she heard Bai Zi Hua say: "It was a coincidence, we do not want to trouble you, we will meet again."
Hua Qian Gu pouted, reluctantly waved at Wang Xi Ri: "Bye!"
Wang Xi Ri folded his hands and bowed: "The favor of saving me, I'll never forget."
Looking at the two figures, one tall one short, gradually disappearing, he returned to leading the tournament.
"Teacher, that man's funny, he's one of the most powerful people, but too honest."
Bai Zi Hua patted her head: "That man and you have a little bit of fate, you will see him again."
"Really? That's great. Teacher, where are we going now?"
"The North Sea."
"Oh, really? I've seen the North Sea Dragon King at the Qun Xian Feast, very good-looking, can we go to the Dragon Palace?”
Bai Zi Hua nodded, hence they went to the North Sea first, then to the Great Wall, then to the southern border. Six months of traveling over mountains and rivers, Hua Qian Gu's cultivation increased significantly. It was easier for her to defeat evil spirits, moving up into the Kan Xin level.
They slept in a valley that night, Hua Qian Gu and Tang Bao ate until they were full then rolled onto the grass and fell asleep.
The summer was hot, there were a lot of mosquitoes in the valley. Bai Zi Hua sprinkled a little powder to destroy the insects around them.
Hua Qian Gu's sleeping form was atrocious, arms and legs everywhere, mouth slightly open, beads of sweats on her nose, breathing heavily. Tang Bao was like her as if carved from the same mold, its sleeping form was exactly the same, right next to her.
Bai Zi Hua's lips curved up, stretching his hand, a big leaf fell down from a tree into his hand. Bai Zi Hua silently looked at Hua Qian Gu's face deep in sleep, gently fanning her and Tang Bao.
Too bad Hua Qian Gu slept like a pig, if not, she would be so happy she could die, then rise up to live and die over again.
A white paper crane suddenly appeared in the distant horizon, landing into Bai Zi Hua's palm.
Bai Zi Hua opened it up and took a look, there were a few simple words: The Shen Nong Cauldron has been stolen.
Chun Qiu Bu Bai seductively leaned back against a chair, the plate on the table was full of insect larvae that had been fattened.
Yun Yi pushed open the door and walked in, seeing him eating happily, he felt nauseous, he preferred the manly appearance.
"The seal has been broken."
"Where's the Demon Lord?"
"Busy meditating."
Chun Qiu Bu Bai knew Sha Qian Mo's meditation involved going to sleep to absorb the essences of heaven and earth etcera etcera, and the sleep would last a long time, improving his internal energy was an unintended consequence, preserving his beauty was the main reason.
"Should we let him know?" Yun Yi's brows furrowed, he was taught a heavy lesson the last time, if they dared to do whatever they wanted again……
"No, we'll tell him after we've taken the holy instruments."
"We also won't tell Zi Xun Qian Xia?"
"How can we tell her? If we let her know we plan to use the Shen Nong Cauldron to kill Bai Zi Hua, then steal a few more holy instruments, do you think she'll break the seal? It'd be strange if she won't try to kill us first."
"It'll be a few of us against Bai Zi Hua?"
Chun Qiu Bu Bai shook his head: "Me, you and Ci Yu suffered heavy injuries, we haven't recovered, Kuang Ye Tian is strong but foolish, we'll let Lan Yu Lan Feng handle this. As long as we can eliminate Bai Zi Hua, getting the other holy instruments shouldn't be hard.”
Early next morning, the teacher and disciple flew on their swords to the north. Hua Qian Gu was not clear what happened, it seemed the Shen Nong Cauldron was stolen, everyone from Mount Lao was hypnotized and became insane. The sect leader was captured, their trip this time was to save people.
The weather became colder in the north, the wind grew stronger. Hua Qian Gu looked at the mountains covered with snow, her small body shivered uncontrollably from the cold, her eyebrows and hair were covered with a layer of ice. Tang Bao climbed into her ear to sleep, mumbling about hibernation, using a little rag as a curtain, blocking the cold wind from blowing in.
"Xiao Gu?"
Bai Zi Hua saw that his little disciple could not take it anymore, flying next to her, pulling her into his light barrier. Immediately, Hua Qian Gu felt the world became much warmer.
Because this was an emergency, flying on swords was faster than the clouds, thus they never stopped for a break. Bai Zi Hua saw that Hua Qian Gu was struggling to keep up, her eyelids kept closing in on her, her sword kept wobbling. He allowed her to put away her sword, then stand behind him, the two of them flying on his sword.
Remembering the first time that Teacher taught her to fly on a sword, Hua Qian Gu softly smiled and wearily held onto Bai Zi Hua's waist. Her small face firmly pressed against his back, forgetting the wind was cold enough to penetrate her skin, snow whirled in misty layers, the world was covered in white and nothing could be seen, she still slept peacefully.
The speed of the sword gradually slowed, the two of them began to descend. Hua Qian Gu drowsily opened her eyes, only seeing an ice river that was imposing and wide. Not a plant or tree could be seen, let alone humans or animals.
The snowstorm lightened, Bai Zi Hua put a white fur coat on Hua Qian Gu, tying the knot, he still wore a thin robe.
"Teacher, you're not cold?"
"I am immortal, how can I feel cold?" Bai Zi Hua brushed the snowflakes off her body, transferring a little internal energy into her. Hua Qian Gu felt warmer, stomping her feet, then blew a white mist at Bai Zi Hua with all of her strength.
"Haha, Teacher, look at me swallowing and blowing mist."
Bai Zi Hua reluctantly shook his head, looking at her laughing naughtily as she slid forward.
The ice was like a mirror, she slipped and fell down, ending in a position that looked like the word "大" (big), hugging the ground. Her mouth kissed the ice, the corners of her lips were covered with snow.
An indulgent smile fleetingly crossed Bai Zi Hua's lips, too bad Hua Qian Gu was busy struggling to get up, afraid her mouth would be frozen. She missed the smile that she had been waiting to see for six years.
Bai Zi Hua was not aware himself, stepping forward to help her up. However, Hua Qian Gu's shoes were slippery, she fell down whenever she tried to stand up.
"Wah……" Hua Qian Gu cried.
Bai Zi Hua squatted down to gently touch under her shoes, many round, tiny wooden pegs appeared under the shoes, a few green vines wrapped around Hua Qian Gu's legs.
"Stand up, you will not slip anymore."
Bai Zi Hua helped her up, Hua Qian Gu ran two steps, it felt like she was walking on sand.
"I've the Wind and Fire Wheels!" She dusted off her bottom, ran forward, the bells on the Emotionless sword kept rattling: "Teacher, in which direction should we go?"
Bai Zi Hua looked around, then pointed to the west: "This area is filled with traps, be careful, do not run wildly."
Hua Qian Gu ran back to him, holding onto Bai Zi Hua's sleeve.
"Teacher, don't worry, I have Tian Shui Di!" Hua Qian Gu shook the necklace around her neck.
"The simple traps can be broken, but not the complicated traps. The demons captured people to lure us here, they would be prepared with a lot of traps, you must be careful."
"Teacher! You know they're luring us here? Why did you come here then?"
"We cannot ignore this. Do not worry, no one in the world can defeat your Teacher."
Bai Zi Hua patted her head, not telling her about his fated curse.
The two of them followed the ice river westward, passing through a canyon, Bai Zi Hua looked around, he was in the middle of the canyon.
A white object suddenly flashed by, Bai Zi Hua did not move, allowing it to hit him.
Hua Qian Gu laughed loudly with her hands on her hips: "Hahaha, I can't believe I hit Teacher, I'm so good!"
Bai Zi Hua reluctantly shook his head: "You're playing around again."
"Hehe, Teacher, can we have a snowball fight?" Hua Qian Gu picked up another snowball, throwing it straight at Bai Zi Hua.
Bai Zi Hua leaned sideways lightly to avoid it: "All right."
"What?" Teacher agreed? Hua Qian Gu was in shock and could not react. The snow suddenly rose up, turning into a lot of snowballs, all of them raining her way.
Hua Qian Gu ran for her life, being pummeled by snowballs everywhere, running and crying loudly: "Teacher, you're cheating!"
Bai Zi Hua looked ahead, suddenly warning her: "Be careful!"
Bai Zi Hua moved forward, pulling Hua Qian Gu and flew away more than 100 meters.
Hua Qian Gu curled up in his embrace, turning around to look, seeing snow and ice had collapsed where she had stood from a cliff above.
"Do not run wildly, there can be an avalanche." Bai Zi Hua patted her head.
"I won't…… I won't dare……" Hua Qian Gu clung to him with one hand, dusting off the snowflakes on his ebony hair with the other hand.
Standing face to face, so close, Hua Qian Gu felt tense, blushing bright red.
Bai Zi Hua put her down.
"Let us go."
"Yes."
Hua Qian Gu happily followed behind, reaching out to grab a hold of his sleeve out of habit. She squinted her eyes, finally daring to grab his hand.
Bai Zi Hua looked down at her: "You are still cold?" He took her 10 fingers that looked like radishes, rubbing them lightly. Teacher's skin was warm like jade, numbing her hands. Hua Qian Gu's legs trembled, trying hard to innocently smile at him.
In the snowstorm, Hua Qian Gu held onto Bai Zi Hua's hand, passing through the last sweet moment of her life.