Sunset Warrior Chant - Chapter 40 - Unified Opinion

The clash of blade against sword rang out once more. The boy spoke, “Dad’s sword is certainly not like a block of tofu, nor is it like a heap of cotton.” The man retorted angrily, “You little rascal, what use do I have for such a weakling?” Another loud clang resounded as a steel blade whooshed into the sky.

Fu Qiruo stood in the courtyard watching the blade as it soared dozens of meters above his head, continuing to float upwards, unwilling to descend. He thought to himself, “This man has tremendous strength.”

Xiao Gang stood in the courtyard counting on his fingers, “Five, six, seven, eight… Based on the blade’s hang time and height, one could roughly determine this man’s swordsman level.”

“It could also measure how angry the man is,” Lu Xiner added, looking up at the sky with her hands on her hips. “It’s about to come down. Let’s guess where it will land.”

“Right here in our courtyard.”

“But shouldn’t we consider the wind direction?”

“I’ve already calculated it. The blade will land a meter in front of me.”

“Are you sure?”

“I’ve handled big blades before, how could I not understand the temper of a blade?”

True to his word, the steel blade plunged straight into the ground a meter in front of Xiao Gang, leaving only a segment of the handle exposed.

“Should we wait for him to come fetch it, or should we deliver it?”

“His house seems to have plenty of blades; he won’t miss this one, but it’s still better to deliver it.”

“It’s your turn to deliver this time.”

“Just throw it over the wall, an eye for an eye, right?”

“Master said we shouldn’t throw it like that.”

As Lu Xiner and Xiao Gang conversed, Fu Wenjun came out. Fu Wenjun said, “Give me the blade, you two keep practicing.” Xiao Gang bent down, pulled the steel blade from the ground, and handed it to his master. Fu Wenjun took the blade, and with a sway of his body, he was already in the neighboring courtyard.

“You shouldn’t teach a child martial arts this way,” Fu Qiruo and Xiao Gang overheard their master advising someone as they agilely climbed onto the wall, peering secretly into the next yard. There they saw a boy sitting on the ground, his face swollen and tear-stained, and a man standing in front of the boy, holding a long sword, with Fu Wenjun standing beside them.

“Who are you to tell me how to teach my child?”

“It’s wrong to teach him this way.”

“How dare you tell me how to raise my child? What business is it of yours?”

“Why don’t you try striking me with your sword and see if it’s as easy as slicing through tofu?”

“Pah! I could chop you into mincemeat.”

“Go ahead and try.”

“You’ve got more guts than my son, alright, take this!”

The man swung his long sword fiercely at Fu Wenjun, the blade shimmering with a golden glow, enveloping Fu Wenjun in its radiance. Fu Wenjun, holding his knife, gently flicked it upwards, causing a thunderous boom. The man was lifted off the ground, soaring over ten meters into the air, his grip on the sword unyielding – he, along with his sword, were sent flying together. Fu Wenjun looked on with surprise; this man really had a tight hold on his sword.

“Dad!” The boy sitting on the ground cried out and leapt up, throwing a punch at Fu Wenjun’s back. The punch, fierce and filled with battle energy, landed heavily on Fu Wenjun’s waist. Xiao Gang, seeing this, exclaimed, “His punch is stronger than mine!” Yet, Fu Wenjun remained unmoved, steady on his feet. He turned around and softly said, “Try throwing a few more punches.”

Disbelieving that his full force had no effect on Fu Wenjun, the boy continued to punch – one, two, three… The punches rained down like droplets, “bang, bang, bang,” continuously hitting Fu Wenjun. He felt as though he was punching a mix of soft and hard forces that repelled his fists. Astonished, he asked, “Am I hitting cotton? Are you wearing some kind of protective treasure?”

“There’s no treasure on me, just ordinary clothes. Actually, you’re quite strong; you just don’t know how to utilize that power effectively,” Fu Wenjun said with a smile. The boy asked, “Why has my dad never told me this? How can I unleash this power then?”

“Are you trying to tell me how to raise my kid? Get out of here.” At that moment, the boy’s dad descended from the sky, gripping the sword handle tightly, his hand bleeding from being jarred by Fu Wenjun’s flick.

The boy pointed at Fu Wenjun and said, “What he says makes sense.”

“I’m your real dad, doesn’t what I say make sense? Am I really going to lead you astray? Come on, let’s go inside and talk this over privately. We need to get our story straight,” the man said, dragging the boy into the house. Fu Wenjun shook his head and sighed, “Why did I even bother? What was the point?”

From inside the room came a series of loud cracks and pops. The man asked, “Have you come to your senses?” The boy replied, “Yeah! All good now.” The man then dragged the boy out, his palm red, while the boy smiled despite his swollen face, which was streaked with blood and marred by a mix of fresh and old wounds, making for a ghastly sight. His smile resembled that of a ghost.

The man said, “Tell me, son, am I right in my teachings, or is he?”

Tears rolled down the boy’s cheeks as he answered, “Of course, you’re right, Dad. No one could ever replace my own father.”

The man replied, “See? Even my son agrees with me. We have no disagreements here. You surely can’t have anything else to say.”

Fu Wenjun’s face suddenly flushed, and Fu Qiruo, seeing his master’s unusual expression and knowing him rarely to show anger, felt a sense of dread, wondering if his master was about to reprimand the man. But then, his master returned to his normal demeanor.

“Ah,” Fu Wenjun sighed deeply, “If I were to fight you, wouldn’t that be just like striking your child?” He threw his steel blade to the ground and told the boy, “There’s nothing in life too difficult for me to handle, except I can’t intervene in this matter. You must take care of yourself.” With that, he swiftly returned to his guest room.

The man told the boy, “Keep training. If I’m not satisfied, you’re skipping lunch!”

The little white cat, lying lazily atop the wall, complained, “This is so boring… Hey, Alixin, stop scratching my fur, will you? It’s not even itchy.” Alixin responded, “Your fur does look quite nice, I just noticed today.”

Fu Qiruo, frustrated by the man’s harsh words and unable to bear it any longer, especially since his master chose not to intervene, leapt down from the wall to discuss with Xiao Gang, “How can we help that kid?” Xiao Gang replied, “His dad keeps a tight watch. How can we possibly help?”

Fu Feng joined in, “We could help him get into Yan Mountain Academy. With his dad far away, he won’t be able to interfere.” Xiao Gang clapped his hands and smiled, “Yeah, that’s the plan. Let’s talk to the master; he’ll know what to do.”

As the neighboring courtyard continued to resonate with shouts and scolds, noon finally arrived. When the man told the boy, “Time for lunch!” Fu Qiruo shouted over, “Hey, young man next door, what’s your name? Why don’t you come over and join us for a good meal?”

“I… I better eat on my own,” stammered the boy, his voice trembling.

“If you dare come over for lunch, see how I’ll deal with you!” the man scolded.

Xiao Gang stuck out his tongue and said, “He really keeps a tight leash.” Suddenly, his expression turned sorrowful; Lu Xiner knew he was reminded of his own fatherless situation, unlike the boy who still had a father to discipline him.

Lunch was laid out in the pavilion, but no one felt like eating. After a few bites, they rested briefly before resuming their cultivation. The little white cat and Alixin jumped down from the wall, with the cat lazily remarking, “It’s time to eat again; such is life.”