The hunchbacked old man’s bamboo staff started to sway slightly. Even though he knew that Bai Shanshui spoke the truth, he did not want to lower his head. Yet, at this time, he suddenly relaxed his hand. He took a deep breath and forced his anger to settle.

“Those that are innocent will be cleared. Mister Bai values the people of Wei the most, even if you are puzzled, why be in such a rush?”

A soft but especially peaceful voice sounded, “You have forced me out. What kind of explanation do you want me to give you?”

Bai Shanshui slowly turned and saw a red-robed woman holding a black zither walking out, not far behind the hunchbacked old man. He sneered disdainfully. “You dare say the innocent will clear themselves. You dare say that Fish Market does not want the Lonely Mountain Sword Hoard I have, and has not tried to investigate my movements?”

The red robed woman looked calmly at Bai Shanshui and said, “Mister Bai has the Lonely Mountain Sword Hoard and naturally should know that possessing the treasure is a crime. You also said previously that we are Qin, and you are Wei. We are natural enemies. If we kill, then we kill, if we do not, then we do not. The murder of your senior sect brother has nothing to do with us.”

Bai Shanshui raised an eyebrow.

The red-robed woman spoke gently. “This lowly woman has finished speaking. Mister Bai, even if you do not believe, you too understand that, if we fight with our lives here, this place is close to the Wei River, you may not be able to escape unharmed.”

Bai Shanshui’s eyebrows continued to rise. His long eyebrows emanated an indescribable pride.

“Believe or not, possible or not, I will only know if I try.”

He shook his head and looked at the red-robed woman. He said, “Personages like me will come to visit Fish Market for nothing?”

Had someone else said “personages like me,” people would find them arrogant and ignorant. But when these words came from Bai Shanshui, they appeared very matter-of-fact.

The hunchbacked old man suddenly went on guard. However, Bai Shanshui had flicked three times with his right hand already.

Three droplets of water floated towards the hunchbacked old man. When they reached the old man, they formed three transparent water bubbles that enveloped the old man’s body.

The red-robed woman sensed something, her brows furrowed slightly as she reached to pluck at her zither.

The strings vibrated. There was no sound, but numerous black bamboo stalks erupted out of the earth. The black bamboo immediately formed a dense forest, covering the sky, forming a world of its own that concealed all the movements of the primal energies of the universe.

Bai Shanshui slowly and casually walked forward. Before him, time and space seemed to be unlimited. He only needed a step to reach the red-robed woman. He reached out towards the red-robed woman’s head.

The red-robed woman raised a hand.

Slap!

The hands met.

Bai Shanshui retreated to his original spot. Countless flows of black energy scattered in front of the red-robed woman. She swayed slightly and took a step back.

At the same time, the hunchbacked old man was enraged. His hair stood on end. Endless black energy sprouted out from under his feet, making it appear as though he was standing on the passageway to hell rather than on the ground.

He swung the black bamboo staff in his hand.

Yet, to his shock, the three transparent bubbles around him were not as strong as he imagined. The three transparent bubbles collapsed under the impact of his black bamboo staff. His attack seemed to feel like a punch at full power that landed empty, unspeakably uncomfortable.

Bai Shanshui stood with his hands behind his back as he looked silently at the numerous black bamboo stalks.

The red-robed woman took a step in front of the hunchbacked old man. Her hands pressed down on the strings, she waited for Bai Shanshui to speak.

However, at this time, in the quiet black bamboo forest, a resonant voice sounded. “Someone is waiting for you on the river.”

Bai Shanshui frowned. His body did not move, but a sharp sword essence broke from his body.

A transparent water light flew through the air and cut an opening in the black bamboo forest.

The voice belonged to a fifty something,with short hair, dressed like a businessperson. He did not give off a strong presence, but his expression was unspeakably calm. Facing Bai Shanshui’s gaze, he showed a hint of rebelliousness.

“Who is waiting for me on the river?”

Bai Shanshui narrowed his eyes slightly and said slowly, “With your weak cultivation, I can kill you at any moment, you should answer honestly.”

The fifty-something short-hair man looked unconcernedly at Bai Shanshui. “I am just a messenger. If Mister Bai finds it interesting, you may kill me.”

“I want to see who dares to wait for me on the river.”

Bai Shanshui’s body shifted, and he flashed right past the short-haired man.

In a moment, the entire Fish Market was filled with white mist. Like a giant dragon, a wave of white mist sprouted out the side of Fish Market.

The river.

Even without an explicit name, Bai Shanshui knew that it would be the nearest Wei River.

The Wei River had strong waves, and only the water, a few hundred feet near the shore, had frozen. The accumulated snow had long melted and the floating ice had disappeared, but the water was still bone-chillingly cold. There were almost no boats fishing on the river.

Bai Shanshui stepped with both feet into the river. As though he were a serpent, waves rose naturally and supported his body.

In a flash, at the center of the river, on a reef stone that was only several inches above the surface, he saw a figure standing.

This figure was not tall, and seemed half a head shorter than him. The figure stood there motionless. In Bai Shanshui’s gaze, the figure appeared indescribably proud.

He himself was one of the proudest, unrestrained, and rebellious people in the world. All cultivators in the world knew that the method of the Wei Cloud Water Palace would grow strong in water. Once he stepped onto the surface of the river, Bai Shanshui would be at his strongest. But this person chose to meet him at his strongest battlefield. This person was even more arrogant than Bai Shanshui.

Bai Shanshui stood motionless, but the waves pushed him faster than any ship in the world. Soon, he was only several dozen feet away from the person standing on the reef rock.

Feeling the heated coal-like presence boiling in the air, Bai Shanshui paused and his lips moved. “Fourth Mister Zhao?”

In the next moment, he sneered. “I was wondering who in the world was so proud. Now I think about it, it can only be the swords of the Zhao Sword Furnace.”

The handsome young person standing on the rock was much shorter than ordinary people. His expression was calm, but his gaze was unimaginably sharp. This was the strongest of the Sword Furnace, Zhao Si.

At Bai Shanshui’s words, Zhao Si replied coolly. “You are very different from the rumored unrestrained brute. You forced the Shang Eldest Miss to fight at full power, I think, to see if she had just had a hard fight.”

“Zhao Qi was killed in the streets of Changling. Zhao Si and Zhao Yi appear together in Changling.” Bai Shanshui looked with slight disdain at Zhao Si and said,”You did not want to see me just to praise me.”

Zhao Si did not conceal and said calmly, “Of course it is for the Lonely Mountain Sword Hoard.”

Bai Shanshui gave a small enchanting smile. “Everybody in the world wants the Lonely Mountain Sword Hoard.”

Zhao Si clanged at him and said, “I am not like them. Other than the Lonely Mountain Sword Hoard, I also want to see your sword. Without the Lonely Mountain Sword Hoard, I also want to see your sword.”

Bai Shanshui’s smile faded and he did not speak.

Zhao Si continued. “When my master’s sword took form, he wanted to see the swords of the world. Later, he fell to a conspiracy and before his death, his only regret was that he hadn’t been able to fight that person. I his most trusted disciple, will naturally fulfill his last wish. I have desired the White Mountain Black Water Sword of the Wei Cloud Water Palace for a long time.”

Bai Shanshui said harshly in sarcasm. “It seems that the rumors are true. The people of the Zhao Sword Furnace are all madmen.”

“Our paths are different.”

Zhao Si looked at Bai Shanshui and spoke in a sedately calm tone. “Your actions in these years is all for the Wei. Even without a hope of regaining your country, you still want to shield the remains of the Wei Dynasty from the storms. But the Zhao Sword Furnace is different from you. The Zhao Sword Furnace was a pure cultivation place. We never had thoughts of fighting for one dynasty or one king. We only pursued our Zhao Sword Furnace sword path. We have our country in our hearts but no king. Since our country no longer exists, we only have our enemies and the sword path we pursue.”

In the eyes of many people, those who were great rebels were likely to work together, but the true situation was that two tigers could not coexist on the same mountain. Due to their different pursuits, for many years Bai Shanshui and Zhao Si had not crossed paths. Today, when they appeared, there was no regret at not having met sooner.

Even more so, no expert who was about to reach the peak would share the treasure they obtained with someone they did not know. No one was willing to give up their original lofty position to someone else, even if there was just a possibility … especially when facing an existence like Zhao Si who could influence the situation of the world.

“Everyone wants to complete what they want to do.”

Bai Shanshui looked at Zhao Si and slowly said, “Everyone wants the Lonely Mountain Sword Hoard, but the Lonely Mountain Sword Hoard is in my hands so I am the fated one.”

Then he took a deep breath and said even more slowly, “For a long time, I have also desired to meet the strongest sword of the Zhao Sword Furnace.”

Translator Ramblings: Guess who is most happy that rebels are fighting each other?