A Man in the Snow: Starting with a Sword Challenge to the Northern Liang Prince's Palace

Within the Lizhu Cave, almost all opportunities have already been decided.

Ye Yun didn't rush to leave. Instead, he wandered around this place, taking in the sights. The Lizhu Cave Heaven wasn't particularly large or small, covering several hundred miles in circumference, with mountains, rivers, forests, and valleys. The visiting cultivators were still searching for opportunities, fighting tooth and nail.

Ye Yun, however, strolled around like a leisurely person, stopping occasionally to admire the scenery.

He was indeed looking for something.

He wasn't looking for a chance encounter, but rather for a feeling. The essence of swordsmanship bestowed by the swordsman was still circulating in his mind, and he had also roughly read through the method of the integration of the three teachings given by Qi Jingchun.

These all require time to digest, but what's needed even more is an opportunity—an opportunity to integrate everything.

One day, while he was meditating in a valley, he suddenly sensed a peculiar energy fluctuation.

The fluctuation was very faint, so faint that ordinary cultivators could not detect it at all, but Ye Yun's sword intent was most sensitive to this kind of aura. It was the fluctuation of sword intent, and it was a kind of sword intent that he had never seen before.

It is not about killing or protecting, but about the passage of time.

Ye Yun opened his eyes and followed the aura.

But that aura came from the cliff.

Ye Yun leaped onto the cliff and saw a boy sitting on the edge.

The boy was about fourteen or fifteen years old, with delicate features. He wore a faded old shirt and cloth shoes with a hole in them, revealing his toes.

He sat there, his legs dangling in the air, swinging back and forth, looking very relaxed.

Liu Xianyang.

Ye Yun made no attempt to conceal himself and walked straight over.

Hearing footsteps, Liu Xianyang turned around abruptly, looking at him warily and asking, "Who are you?"

Ye Yun sat down next to him and said calmly, "A sword cultivator from out of town."

Liu Xianyang's eyes became even more wary.

He instinctively covered his chest, where something was bulging and bulging.

Ye Yun didn't look at what was in his arms, but instead gazed at the distant mountains and said softly, "That thing in your arms is quite interesting."

Liu Xianyang's expression changed drastically. He stood up abruptly, took a few steps back, and stared intently at Ye Yun, saying, "Don't even think about touching it!"

Ye Yun didn't move, but looked up at him and calmly said, "I'm not going to steal it, I'm just curious."

Liu Xianyang stared at him for a long time, seemingly trying to determine the truthfulness of his words.

How did you know?

"I see a trace of sword intent flowing through you, very faint, but very special. It's not something you cultivated yourself; it's something that brought it to you."

Liu Xianyang remained silent for a moment, then looked down at the object in his arms.

"This is something from my family, an heirloom," he said softly.

Ye Yun nodded: "Why don't you cultivate it?"

Liu Xianyang's hand tightened, but he didn't say anything.

Ye Yun continued, "This sword manual is very suitable for you."

Liu Xianyang raised his head, looking into the distance, a hint of bitterness in his eyes.

"I can't fix it."

Why?

Liu Xianyang remained silent for a long time before whispering, "I've tried. I can't master the things in that sword manual. Every time I try to comprehend them, I get a splitting headache, as if something is stopping me."

Ye Yun seemed to be deep in thought.

He remembered that in the original story, Liu Xianyang could practice swordsmanship in his dreams, and his sword manual was created on its own.

That sword manual wasn't an ordinary cultivation method, but a supernatural power related to the river of time. Liu Xianyang couldn't cultivate it because he lacked proper guidance.

"Looks like someone's got their eye on this thing of yours."

Liu Xianyang turned to look at him, a hint of surprise in his eyes: "How did you know?"

Ye Yun didn't answer, but instead smiled at him.

Liu Xianyang lowered his head and said softly, "The people from Zhengyang Mountain have their eyes on me, as have the Chen family. They all know I have this thing and they all want it. They've threatened me with Chen Ping'an's life, saying they'll kill him if I don't hand over the sword manual."

"Do you need any help?"

Liu Xianyang raised his head, his eyes filled with anger and helplessness: "These are my family's things, why should we give them to them? But Chen Ping'an, can you help me?"

Ye Yun looked at him and suddenly remembered the scene she saw at the tea stall in the west of the town that day, where Chen Ping'an stood in front of Liu Xianyang and the two fought side by side.

These two boys were poor children who grew up in Mud Bottle Alley. They had nothing but each other.

"Sure, but what price do you have to pay?" Ye Yun said with a smile.

Liu Xianyang turned to look at him, his eyes showing a mixture of hesitation and anticipation.

"You're amazing, aren't you?"

Ye Yun laughed and said, "That's impressive. Destroying Zhengyang Mountain is no problem."

Liu Xianyang looked at Ye Yun in surprise, not expecting him to be so strong.

He took a deep breath, as if making a decision: "Help me hold off those people, and I'll give you the sword manual."

Ye Yun looked at him and said, "Deal. I just want to borrow it to take a look."

Liu Xianyang was stunned.

Ye Yun stood up, patted the dirt off his clothes, and said, "I've stopped him from dying. Whether it's Zhengyang Mountain or the Chen family, Chen Ping'an won't die."

Liu Xianyang stared at him blankly, unable to believe his ears.

"Why did you help me?" he stammered.

Ye Yun thought for a moment and said softly, "Because of Ning Yao."

Liu Xianyang was even more confused: "Ning Yao? That female sword cultivator from out of town? You know her?"

Ye Yun nodded: "I consider myself half her master."

He didn't tell the truth, but there was no need to say too much. He was willing to help Liu Xianyang.

It was indeed partly due to Ning Yao; that girl liked Chen Ping'an and naturally didn't want anything to happen to him. But he also had his own reasons.

"Live well. Keep the sword manual for yourself; it will be useful in the future."

He turned and walked down the mountain.

Liu Xianyang, clutching the things in his arms, stood frozen in place. Watching Ye Yun's figure recede into the distance, he suddenly called out, "Hey! What's your name?"

"Ye Yun." A voice came from afar, already somewhat indistinct.

The wind blew up from the valley, making his clothes flutter.

He looked down at the sword manual in his arms, then looked up at the direction where Ye Yun had disappeared, and his eyes suddenly felt a little sore.

"Thanks," he said softly.

Ye Yun had already walked far away and could no longer hear those words.

As he walked down the mountain, he was still thinking about what had just happened.

Liu Xianyang's sword manual, with its sword intent related to the long river of time, stirred something within him.

What is the difference between practicing swordsmanship in a dream and practicing swordsmanship in the long river of time?

One is a dream, the other is the river of time, but is there really a difference between time in a dream and real time?

He recalled his experience of attaining enlightenment in the long river of time, a profound and mysterious state where he felt as if he had merged into the river of time, where the past, present, and future were all within a single thought.

Is Liu Xianyang practicing swordsmanship in his dream the same principle?

Ye Yun seemed to be deep in thought.

He decided to find an opportunity to borrow that sword manual to take a look.

It's not for cultivation, but for verification.

This confirms the path he envisioned.

By the time Ye Yun returned to the town, it was already dark.

He returned to the dilapidated house, pushed open the door, lit the lamp, and sat down by the window.

But Liu Xianyang caught up with him and gave him the sword manual ahead of time.

"You can take a look," Liu Xianyang said and ran off, afraid that Ye Yun would refuse.

Ye Yun looked at the sword manual in his hand, his sword intent probing into it.

A profound and mysterious sword intent surged into his sea of ​​consciousness. The sword intent was ancient and peculiar; it was not a killing intent, but a power related to time.

Ye Yun was so engrossed in the dream that he didn't wake up for a long time.