Chapter 140 – 126 Admiring Jade
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East of An Yu County.
The ‘Lin’an River’, which meandered through nearly half of the county, lay exposed, stretching dozens of meters with its riverbed barren and dry, reminiscent of cracked farmland, devoid of any hint of moisture.
Yet after an indeterminate period, the parched air that threatened to crack lips, began to moisten subtly, spreading slowly and pushing back the dryness.
At the exhausted end of the riverbed.
Somehow, a trickling stream had appeared silently, flowing gently downstream.
“It’s over.”
Chen Mu walked along the riverbank, watching this scene unfold and let out a sigh of relief.
The air became humid again, the desiccated riverbed was once more alive with flow, even if it was just a slender trickle, indicating the end of the drought that had persisted for over half a month.
Though the fatalities in Yu County were fewer compared to the severe cold earlier in the year—thanks to stored water supplies, as opposed to the poor who could not afford cotton quilts or sturdy homes to withstand the cold—Chen Mu felt that droughts were far more terrifying than cold spells.
Water is the essence of life; a prolonged drought lasting two or even three months could have unimaginable consequences, sparing neither commoners nor martial artists.
Fortunately, this drought, like others before it, had come to an end.
“The highest goodness is like water.”
“Water benefits all things without contention, dwelling in places that none desire… hence, it’s almost akin to the Tao.”
Chen Mu’s mind was suddenly filled with these words from the Tao Te Ching of his previous life. He contemplated them as he gazed at the revitalizing stream snaking its way through the landscape.
At this moment.
Xu Hongyu stood beside him, also fixated on the winding stream. Upon hearing his words, she paused as if struck by a realization and remained motionless.
Chen Mu swiftly noticed Xu Hongyu’s expression, glanced at her, then quietly stood aside, not making a move or uttering a word to disturb her.
After a while.
Xu Hongyu, as if roused from reverie, delicately drew her Soft Sword from her waist, the fine blade shining like White Jade. Facing the stream’s direction, she unleashed a stroke, its gleam soft and white, devoid of aggression or defense, untargeted, merely flowing with the stream like an embodiment of pure momentum.
She effortlessly attained enlightenment on the third Sword Momentum that had eluded her grasp, scaling new heights in her mastery.
After a few more sword swings, Xu Hongyu thrust forward, her blade splitting into three lights, each depicting a different Sword Momentum that then unified into one, slicing off a section of the riverbank.
“Good.”
Chen Mu smiled slightly at the sight, whether in admiration of Xu Hongyu’s Swordsmanship or the graceful figure she cut in her pale yellow dress as she wielded the sword.
Since the battle in the Wilderness, Donghong Township had been quiet for nearly a week. The occasional large-scale beast turmoil was swiftly quelled by him, until this morning when Xu Hongyu, more attuned to the aura of Water due to her practice with Kan Water Sect techniques, sensed the end of the drought before Chen Mu did.
Recalling that Xu Hongyu had not quite grasped her third form of Swordsmanship, ‘Floating Water Sword’, Chen Mu had suggested she walk by the riverbank to observe the water, perhaps to gain some insight.
However, now.
It seemed Xu Hongyu’s breakthrough in grasping the third Sword Momentum was more related to his statement ��The highest goodness is like water”; such profound words seem to have guiding power in this world. Regrettably, he hadn’t been interested in such texts in his previous life, leaving only fragmented memories of various scriptures.
If only the phrase “The highest goodness is like water” could lead Xu Hongyu to instant enlightenment, transcending realms, but that was a bit too fanciful; after all, scriptures, however close they might be to the Tao, are not as direct as Artistic Conception Maps.
Whoosh.
Xu Hongyu sheathed her sword, a glint of joy in her eyes.
Having finally grasped the elusive third Sword Momentum, she could now fully immerse herself in studying the Kan Water Diagram to unravel the Kan Water Artistic Conception.
With this thought, she again turned to Chen Mu, her eyes shimmering, “No wonder you were able to understand two Artistic Conceptions in such a short span, even without having seen the Artistic Conception Map, you could deduce the Xun Wind Artistic Conception…”
The highest goodness is like water, benefiting all things without contention, dwelling in places all shun, thus near to the Tao.
Without having practiced Kan Water Artistic Conception, merely witnessing the drought’s end and the return of the stream allowed for a realization that nearly touched the essence of Tao. She wondered just how many more steps he had advanced in his understanding of the Way of the world.
Chen Mu knew Xu Hongyu misunderstood his quote as his own enlightenment, but he chose not to clarify, instead observing her joyful and slightly less icy countenance. Suddenly, he reached out and touched her cheek with a gentle caress feeling the smoothness, cool like jade.
Two years had passed since they first met, from strangers to acquaintances to trust, from subordinates to comrades to standing before one another, from appreciation to affection to action. If he had not yet understood her feelings, he would be truly oblivious, as some matters required him to be proactive.