This chapter was brought to you by AnmesicCat, Masadeer, and StellarAshes.
Daylight’s Path
Daylight followed his new master; Wanyuan, closely. At first nothing seemed strange to him. In order to coordinate with his master’s slow walking speed, Daylight slowed his pace. Who knew by doing so, Daylight was actually falling behind. He was shocked, and seeing master’s figure getting further and further away.
He thought, ‘Strange, master looks like he’s stumbling, but his actual speed seems quite fast.’
Daylight had a question in mind, and he wanted an answer immediately. He quickly hastened his steps to follow Wanyuan. When he reached a few steps away from Wanyuan, he did not slow down. In fact, he was practically jogging. But strangely, Daylight and Wanyuan were always a few steps apart.
Unconsciously, Daylight’s steps went faster and faster, because he wanted to get ahead of his master. He increased his speed until he was sprinting, but the stumbling old man was always a few steps in front of him.
Daylight wasn’t someone to admit defeat or give up halfway. He ran quickly as he closely observed the posture of Wanyuan walking: his unhurried steps was actually moving blazing speed.
Daylight thought about it briefly, and slowed down his pace. What was strange was that the distance of them did not change, it neither increased nor decreased: it was still a few steps part.
“That’s amazing. Could master have eyes on his back? How else would he know how fast I was running?” Daylight exclaimed aloud.
The buff man walking next to them opened his mouth and said, “Junior brother apprentice, not only does master have eyes on his back, he has eyes everywhere on his body.”
“What!” Daylight held his eyes and jaws open while looking at his brother apprentice.
Wanyuan suddenly burst out laughing, then said, “Little Grass, stop bullying your junior brother apprentice. If I had eyes all over my body, wouldn’t I be a demon?”
“Little Grass?” Daylight heard this strange name, then turned towards his burly brother apprentice, ‘Little Grass?’
The brawny man who was called Little Grass said with dissatisfaction, “Master wished for me to be like grass, saying something about having vigorous vitality. My body must be as soft as a grass: come with the wind, and go with the wind so no matter how strong the wind may be, it would not break. Honestly, I don’t get it, isn’t fighting about who’s stronger?”
Little Grass suddenly seemed to remember something and said, “Junior brother apprentice, you’re not allowed to call me Little Grass. You have to call me Grass brother apprentice, understood?”
Daylight had no time to answer him. ‘Come with the wind, and go with the wind.’
A few ideas dawned on Daylight. He wanted to grab ahold of them, but those ideas jumped around his mind like naughty children, which made Daylight angry, but he wasn’t willing to give up.
‘Fighting is a match of who’s stronger?’ Daylight yelled, “NO!”
He remembered Liola’s thin body. If they were actually comparing muscle strength, Liola might not even be his match, but truthfully, Liola was so much more powerful than him. Unknowingly, Daylight remembered many scenes where Liola fought.
From what he remembered, it was rare for Liola to clash his weapon with his opponents’ to test his muscle strength. Instead, he was always… always… Daylight couldn’t find the words to describe Liola’s actions.
At this time, Wanyuan’s voice could be heard, “You are a tree, and you resist the wind forcefully. When you can’t, you fall.”
“Silver Moon is a grass, he comes and goes with the wind.”
[T/N: No indication whatsoever how Wanyuan suddenly knows how Silver Moon and Liola is the same person. At least this seem to suggest he knew.]
Daylight suddenly realized. ‘Right! Liola was always reacting to his opponents’ movements. His weapon rarely clash with his enemies’. When his enemy stabs, Broken Silver would slide along the hilt of the enemies toward their bodies. Even though it looked like his opponent was attacking and Liola was backing up, but in fact, it was his opponent throwing themselves at Liola’s blade.’
Daylight took out his pike and, while remembering Liola’s movements, thought about the possible reaction he should have made…
Wanyuan threw another line to his apprentice, “Circle your pike, and your attack will succeed.”
Daylight was surprised.
‘Circle the pike?’ It was something Daylight never thought about. Stabbing his pike was always the method of attack.
‘Going around?’ But Daylight did not doubt anything Wanyuan said. Since he chose to believe Wanyuan, Daylight continued to stubbornly believe him. Despite being unaccustomed to it, he waved his pike in a circular fashion.
* * *
Little Grass saw Daylight was obsessed with training, he was at a loss and he asked the master, “Are we not going to cover more distance today?”
“In a bit, don’t interrupt your brother apprentice’s thoughts.”
“Oh, okay.” Little Grass replied and scratched his head.
Wanyuan glanced at Little Grass, and when he didn’t see any dissatisfaction, he relaxed.
Despite the innate talents of this apprentice being low, he was simple-minded, and despite liking to cause trouble, he didn’t actually cause any harm.
Wanyuan thought, perhaps it was better he was unlike Wanyuan’s other apprentice, even though he was the esteemed Martial Arts Alliance Leader. But how many of those Alliance Leaders actually end up well throughout history?
Little Grass seemed a bit bored, then asked, “Master, you always say we should be like grass, and Silver Moon already acts like grass, so is he stronger than you?”
Wanyuan raised his eyebrows and said, “Silver Moon’s innate talents are so incredible and I’ve never seen another like him. Along with his master’s training, his power are truly amazing for someone his age. Nevertheless, there’s always someone better. From what I know, there are already quite a few hidden people in the Martial Arts World who could beat him.”
“Master, you lied, saying something about grass can’t fall, but isn’t he falling?” Little Grass seemed even more unhappy with his name.
Wanyuan mercilessly smacked his apprentice on the back of the head, and scolded a bit, “I said be like grass, it doesn’t mean grass is the highest level.”
“What!” Little Grass yelled, “There’s another level above?”
“Of course.”
Wanyuan reached out his hand and drew an “8” in the air. In Little Grass’s eyes, the arm moved very slowly.
He reached out his hand with a little disdain, trying to grab his master’s hand, but time after time he grabbed nothing but air. Little Grass was very surprised: master’s hand was obviously moving very slow, and it was always following the same path, so why couldn’t he grab it?
Wanyuan returned his hands on his back, and said, “The higher level… is to turn yourself into wind.”
Little Grass was at even more of a loss. Being grass wasn’t enough, so he had to turn himself into wind?
He murmured, “Grass is visible at least. Wind can’t even be seen. Other than master, can anyone even become the wind?”
“Ignorant!” Wanyuan scolded his apprentice.
Little Grass didn’t back down, he asked back, “Then, master, who have you seen turn into wind.”
Wanyuan shook his head, “There are quite many who could. But at their level, most don’t even care for fame, power, and money anymore. Most of them live hidden away from this world, so of course you wouldn’t know about them.”
“But, there is one person you should know.”
“Who?” Little Grass asked foolishly.
“Shalong Hall’s leader.”
Little Grass was shocked, and yelled loudly, “The Assassin Organization’s leader?”
Wanyuan nodded, and said with a projecting voice, “He is an incredible man. He appeared out of nowhere, and there was immense power on his body. A few dozen years ago, when he had just formed Shalong Hall, I once had a conflict with him.”
“Master, you’ve fought with him?” Little Grass was in disbelief, then hurriedly asked, “Master, did you win or lose?”
Wanyuan answered simply, “Both won and lost.”
“How can you both win and lose? Master, you’re not making any sense.” Little Grass scratched his head in confusion.
“Won, because the result of the fight was indeed my win.” Wanyuan looked deep in thought, “Lost, because he seemed to have a strange and incredible power other than his Kung Fu, but he did not use it, even after he lost. When I asked him why, he said the power did not belong in this world, and it wouldn’t be fair.”
Wanyuan shook his head, “A man both crazy and presumptuous. Even when I said I’ll kill him, he didn’t want to use the mysterious power to save himself.”
Having said this, he began to remember that wildly arrogant figure and laughter. What kind of person was he…
“I said no, so I won’t use it. I lost, and I deserve to die!”
“Then did you really kill him, master?” Little Grass acted as if he was listening to a story. When he was intrigued, the storyteller suddenly closed his mouth. It was uncomfortable for Little Grass to end on a cliffhanger.
Wanyuan snapped, “If I killed him, then is their current Leader a ghost?”
Little Grass thought for a moment, and nodded. He then started to laugh foolishly with embarrassment.
“I let him go, he told me he would never thank anyone, but he will one day repay me.” Wanyuan paradoxically shook his head as he smiled, then murmured,
“Looks like someone avenged my apprentice, and saved this old man from having to work hard for revenge.”
Little Grass still wanted to ask what he meant, but Wanyuan frowned and waved his hand to stop Little Grass. He turned around and looked at the horizon far away, as if he was waiting for something.
Little Grass saw master’s actions, and also stared blankly at the sky. Since he believed his master, he didn’t doubt for a second there would be things appearing out of the sky other than birds.
In the sky, a small dot appeared, and it gradually grew while getting closer and closer. It was obvious by now, it was definitely not a bird. When the thing was close enough to see clearly, they saw an elegant and beautiful beast: the king of the skies, a Snow-White Dragon.
“Aiya, master, a demon!” Little Grass opened his mouth. He had never seen such a terrifying creature. Such a giant, sturdy look struck terror into the hearts of anyone who saw it.
Wanyuan frowned slightly. He turned and looked at the small Flames, then looked back at the Snow-White giant creature. Even though the size and color were different, but he could tell the shapes were fairly similar. Could this giant beast be here for his new apprentice?
* * *
At this time, Flames also ran towards its master, and pulled Daylight, who was practicing his moves.
Daylight suddenly snapped from his Martial Arts craze. At this time, the giant creature also flapped its giant wings while it landed, causing quite a wave of strong winds.
“Baolilong?” Daylight was in shock, then looked towards Baolilong’s back. Instead of a familiar figure, however, Daylight saw a graceful young woman.
The girl fell off the Dragon’s back the moment Baolilong landed. She spent a long time on the ground, and could not seem to stand up.
Daylight rushed over, and patted the girls back as he asked caringly, “Yulie, are you okay?”
The girl’s face was pale, and she kept shaking her head. Two streams of tears were running down her face. Her first flight experience had scared her out of her mind.
Daylight also knew, Baolilong’s terrifying flight was not something an ordinary person could endure, so he had to suppress his questions and wait until Long Yulie recovered a little.
Little Grass saw Daylight’s intimate actions towards her, and began to laugh suggestively, it was a laugh only men could understand, “Brother apprentice, I didn’t think you would have such a pretty paramour.”
Little Grass’s words caused Long Yulie, despite being out of it, to blush.
Daylight seem shocked, then asked, “What does ‘paramour’ mean?”
Little Grass didn’t know his brother apprentice was so clueless about interpersonal relationships, and he didn’t even know what “paramour” meant. He would even ask what it was in front of a girl.
Little Grass answered with a stutter, “‘Paramour’ means… aiya, i-it just means a girl whose relationship with you is out of the ordinary.”
Hearing Little Grass’s obscure explanation. Daylight scratched his head. Since he didn’t understand the relationships in this world, he naturally thought friends were a relationship out of the ordinary, so he answered after a brief moment of thought,
“Yeah, our relationship is out of the ordinary.”
Little Grass widened his eyes, and Yulie’s face turned crimson. She thought, maybe she should open her mouth to clarify, but she also subconsciously did not want to clear anything up. So she decided to lower her head and not say anything.
At this time, Wanyuan coughed a few times, and pulled everyone’s attention back. He asked,
“Little girl, why are you here looking for my apprentice? Did something happen to his companions?”
Daylight finally remembered what was important, and he turned to ask hurriedly, “Yulie, tell us quickly!”
Yulie was at a loss at what to say. She froze with her mouth open. At this time, however, the giant white Dragon next to her disappeared in waves of intense white light. What replaced it was actually a small child, and this situation put Wanyuan and Liittle Grass at a loss.
But Daylight wasn’t surprised by it. When Baolilong ran straight to Daylight with tears in its large eyes.
Daylight was shocked, and asked hurriedly, “Baolilong, what happened to everyone?”
Baolilong suddenly bawled, while yelled vaguely, “Papa ran into the devil, and the devil beat up papa, then said a lot of things. Then papa turned really really scary. Papa ran off, without taking Baolilong.”
“Devil?” Daylight had gotten dizzy from hearing the cries. ‘How did a devil suddenly appear? And who was this devil?’
“It’s the Leader; Shalong Hall’s Leader!” Yulie could finally speak now, and her voice was filled with trembling and terror, “Y-your second brother apprentice is actually the top Assassin Silver Moon.”
Yulie suddenly remembered the Leader’s task for her. The intense fear she felt forced her to begin repeat the Leader’s message, and she wouldn’t dare to even miss a single word.
“Wanyuan’s apprentice, I know you don’t belong here, and you should know my name: I am Gle.”
“Gle!” Daylight’s body trembled. He would have never imagined he would hear such a forbidden name in this world.
“Listen to me well, I will give you three month’s time. After three months, you must fight with Silver Moon, whom I have taught single-handedly. If you win, I will return your two friends to you. If you lose, oh well, I will kill Liola, because he’s the Dragon Emperor’s son.”
“However, to be fair, I’ll give you one more advantage, considering I did teach Silver Moon for twenty years, whereas you only have three months. I will train Kaiser strictly, and when the time comes, you will fight together with Kaiser. If you still lose, at most SIlver Moon will beheaded, but at least it shouldn’t matter to you.”
“Hahaha, Wanyuan, you better mentor your new apprentice well. This duel will be our second match, hahaha.”
This speech from the arrogant Gle seemed to have lost some of its tone when repeated by Yulie, but the contents of which was clear enough.
Although Daylight didn’t know how this came to be, he was clear that three months from now, he must defeat Liola; otherwise… Liola will die?
“This guy is still as ridiculous as he was.” Wanyuan shook his head.
Little Grass scratched his head, and murmured in confusion, “What kind of duel is this, wanting his apprentice to fight with someone, and if his apprentice wins, then the apprentice would die?”
“Master.” Daylight took a few deep breaths.
Even though he knew Liola was strong and to beat him with only three months of training was simply ludicrous, Daylight was not going to give up. His face was covered with determination, and he bent down on one knee to his master,
“Master, please mentor me in the strictest way possible. No matter what, in three months, I must go and rescue my companions.”
“No matter which aspect you consider: innate talent, training length, or training method, you pale in comparison to Silver Moon in all aspects.. Even though you are the one in a million Martial Arts prodigy, your opponent is Silver Moon, who had been training for twenty years, plus his master is Gle, who would use all sorts of possibly fatal methods to train…”
Wanyuan looked up into the sky, and said to his apprentice honestly, “Even with the strictest method, in three months, it would still be impossible for you to defeat Silver Moon. Do you still wish to train?”
Daylight showed no signs of backing off, he yelled loudly, “Then use the method more strict than the strictest method!”
Wanyuan turned his face towards the sky and laughed, “Young one, ah, young one, okay! I will handle you with the most stringent method. Little Grass.”
“Yes, Master?” Little Grass answered obediently.
“Go buy a few of the best horses. We are heading to Divine Medicine Valley, and find that God of Medicine guy.”
Wanyuan laughed while stroking his beard, “I’m definitely going to make that old fossil take out his best medicine.”
Unknown to Wanyuan, Daylight was in even more of a hurry. He immediately told Flames to become bigger, and then yelled, “Master, there’s no time. It would be faster to ride my Dragon there.”
Wanyuan, Little Grass, and Yulie turned, only to see a giant Red Dragon. Hearing its feverish Dragon Roar, all three of their faces changed to three different shades.