Chapter 204: Gai Nie (Please Subscribe, Please Support)

“Tianming, are you afraid?”
“No.”
“There are so many of them, yet they don’t attack. Do you know why?”
“It seems… they’re afraid!”
“That’s right.”
“Are they really afraid of you?”
“They’re not afraid of me.”
“Then what are they afraid of?”
“They fear the consequences of standing in my way. You must remember their eyes—never forget them for the rest of your life!”
“Why?”
“Because those are the eyes of the weak. You must never become weak.”
“I want to be strong. One day, I will be as strong as Uncle.”
“To become strong, you must not avoid the fear in your heart.”
Tianming said resolutely, “Uncle, I won’t be afraid!”
“Fear is not a weakness. The strong make their enemies more fearful than themselves,” said Gai Nie earnestly. Tianming was the son of Jing Ke; he had to become strong, or he would not survive.

The army commander summoned courage, pointing at Gai Nie: “Gai Nie, you have no way out. Drop your weapons quickly.”
Though the commander knew that three hundred men could not defeat Gai Nie, defying orders meant death for them and their families. Knowing they faced certain death, they still chose to fight with all their might. Moreover, Gai Nie had a child with him, requiring his attention and protection, which gave the soldiers a sliver of hope.

On a distant mountaintop stood two figures: one in a black robe with a bamboo hat, the other an old man with white hair.
The man in black was the current head of the Mohist school, the former Crown Prince Dan of Yan Kingdom. The white-haired elder was the inheritor of Mohist mechanical arts, respectfully called Master Ban, commonly known as Old Ban.

“Hmph! The greatest swordsman of Qin against the elite iron cavalry of Qin—this will be an exciting spectacle,” Old Ban snorted, amused to see the once-great swordsman of Qin fighting against Qin’s own three hundred iron cavalry, like dogs biting each other.
“How’s the investigation on the child going?” the head asked coldly.
Old Ban considered the information and replied, “The child’s name is Tianming, an orphan once adopted by an elderly couple. However, a great fire took their lives, leaving the child to wander the streets. A month ago, Gai Nie found him.”
“Orphaned, adopted, fire, wandering… such a complicated past for one so young. So Gai Nie has been secretly investigating for years just to find this child?” The head was surprised. For Gai Nie to betray Qin for this child, what secret did the boy hold?
“Apparently so. It seems he won’t affect our plans much. Besides, with this greatest swordsman of Qin distracting Ying Zheng, it works to our advantage,” Old Ban nodded.

The head said nothing, instead focusing on the battle below. Gai Nie, the Sword Saint, could have slain the three hundred iron cavalry without a scratch, but with Tianming as a burden, he struggled to fend off their assaults.

The fight grew fiercer—clashing swords and flying blades. A hundred cavalry had fallen, yet not a single wound marked Gai Nie.
“Don’t attack Gai Nie! Focus all efforts on the child!” the leading commander shouted. If this continued, they would all die without harming Gai Nie. Though underhanded, victory mattered most; no one cared about the means.

...

A thousand-year era had come to an end. In everyone’s heart lay a wasteland. The once vast and glorious plains of memory had turned to dust under the shadow of a new world.
The relentless resistance of the past had crumbled beneath merciless iron hooves. The fragmented warlords had been forged into a unified land. The deafening clamor had settled into a single voice.
Ying Zheng—the ruler of this empire—was China’s first emperor, known to history as Qin Shi Huang.

Upon the ruins of the old era, he began building an unprecedented dream, a dream belonging solely to himself. Deep beneath the land, a grand tomb was being prepared for him.
He continuously expanded his armies, on land and underground alike, determined to be the sovereign of all. To realize this ambitious dream, he would eliminate any obstacle to the empire.

A horse galloped swiftly across the wilderness. Its rider lay limp on its back, bleeding. With a neigh, the rider fell, dropping a battle report.
A eunuch hurriedly presented it to King Ying Zheng.

From the palace hall came Ying Zheng’s furious voice: “Gai Nie and a child—just two people—have wiped out the entire three hundred iron cavalry of Qin!”
He threw the report aside, which fell open on the ground, stained with soldiers’ blood.

“This report is absurd,” Ying Zheng scowled. “When Qin attacked Chu, we lost a hundred thousand troops and suffered defeat. The next year, I sent five times the forces, and even stubborn Chu fell beneath Qin’s iron hooves. Hmph! If three hundred can’t catch them, then use three thousand, thirty thousand, three hundred thousand!” Ying Zheng’s voice was cold and resolute. As the unifier of the Six Kingdoms, only one fate awaited those who stood against him: destruction.

In the midst of Ying Zheng’s rage, no official dared speak—none even dared to breathe. Only Prime Minister Li Si stepped forward, bowing respectfully.
“Your Majesty, please calm your anger. The Qin iron cavalry excel at charging and siege warfare, but facing a martial artist like Gai Nie, they are at a disadvantage.”
“Hmph!” Ying Zheng snorted dismissively.
Li Si continued, “The sword is the king of weapons, and Gai Nie is the finest swordsman. He is known as the Sword Saint in the martial world, a title not lightly earned.”

Ying Zheng felt a grudging agreement. No one knew Gai Nie’s strength better than he did. This was why his anger burned so fiercely—because he trusted Gai Nie, yet Gai Nie had betrayed him. The thought that Gai Nie could have killed him at any moment filled him with inextinguishable fury.

Li Si paused, then said, “Gai Nie’s defection is no accident. Intelligence suggests that rebellious forces among the Six Kingdoms are plotting a grand conspiracy detrimental to the empire.”
“I see,” Ying Zheng nodded, signaling him to continue.
“To eliminate such martial factions, we must use poison against poison,” Li Si said respectfully.
“Hmm? Poison against poison? Do you have a suitable candidate now?”
“Gai Nie was trained in the Guigu School, where each headmaster accepts only two disciples in a lifetime. Strangely, these two disciples are rivals—one follows the vertical path, the other the horizontal—sworn enemies who cannot coexist. Only one can remain: the new Guigu master. This peculiar tradition has lasted centuries. Gai Nie is one of those two disciples.”
“Leave this matter to you,” Ying Zheng said calmly. Now an emperor must never be clouded by anger, for a ruler’s wrath can stain thousands of miles with blood.

“Yes!” Li Si bowed respectfully and withdrew.

...

“Xiao Xie? Your current name, Seventeenth Brother... now, you’re the only family I have left in this world. Do you still remember your sister?”
A woman in a red slit dress, alluring and graceful like a beautiful serpent, murmured to herself.

“You’re no longer the Seventeenth Brother you once were, and I am no longer the Scarlet Lotus Princess. When we meet again, will you still recognize me?”
The desert assassin, Chilian, whispered toward Qingyun City’s direction.

Xiao Xie had long secluded himself; Chilian thought he was dead. But over a month ago, while investigating the recently notorious Ascending Tower, she learned that the Seventeenth Young Master of Han Kingdom had not died. He had changed his name to Xiao Xie and had become the tower’s master.

Though years had passed, a single glance from afar was enough for Chilian to recognize Xiao Xie as her Seventeenth Brother. Yet she dared only observe from a distance, never revealing herself. She feared he might not recognize her now, so she chose to avoid a reunion.