Translator: Aristophaneso Editor: Caron_
“Saber Intent!”
The unfamiliar, enchanting term filled his imagination and a light seemed to flash within his eyes as if something was almost in his grasp only to flit out of his reach.
“Yes! Saber Intent! When I visited Blood Jade City, I heard rumors that some peerless geniuses comprehended weapon intent in the Martial Master realm,” Ye Feng said, emotion bubbling forth in his voice and filling his face. “But you—you’re only a Level Eight Martial Artist.”
“Only a peerless genius in the Martial Master realm can comprehend Saber Intent…” Ye Tian murmured to himself, finally understanding Ye Feng’s excitement.
“Ye Tian, here, this is a story about Saber Intent!”
The Martial Instruction Elder moved to Ye Tian’s side, just as moved as Ye Feng as he handed Ye Tian the sheepskin scroll.
Ye Tian took the offered scroll expectantly, focusing on the words.
“A Martial Master who comprehends Saber Intent is already considered a peerless genius, but Ye Tian managed it as a Level Eight Martial Artist! A genius among geniuses… haha!” The Martial Instruction Elder laughed cheerfully and full of delight.
Ye Feng nodded in agreement. “Yes, Ye Tian is even more talented than them, comprehending Saber Intent in the Martial Artist realm at the age of sixteen. He’s far more talented than those twenty or thirty-year-old geniuses.”
The two experts couldn’t hold back their glee and excitement, even more thrilled than if Ye Tian had suddenly advanced to the Martial Master realm.
Their Ye Family Village was hiding a truly remarkable big shot, and they imagined that perhaps one day, Ye Tian’s name would shake the entire continent.
“Saber Intent…”
Detached from the celebration occurring around him, Ye Tian focused narrow-mindedly on the ancient sheepskin scroll, the lines of clear words clearly the notes of a powerhouse.
“What is Saber Intent?” The text began, filling Ye Tian with anticipation.
“A youth once asked me this, and I answered: “Saber Intent is a Saber’s Soul, just as a living person has a soul. If a Saber wants to live, it must possess a soul, and this soul is Saber Intent.”
Soul? Saber Intent!
Ye Tian’s eyes narrowed with suspicion, the words clear but the explanation too strange. If he had read this in his previous life, he would’ve thought it a scam written by a wandering charlatan.
But after being reborn into a world of powerful Martial Warriors, Ye Tian knew firsthand that marvels and mysteries lay beyond his knowledge, so perhaps this Saber Intent was such a mystery.
He continued to read carefully.
“Then the youth asked me again, wondering why after ten years of practice he still had not comprehended Saber Intent and why he could not feel his Saber’s soul. I smiled and replied: ‘The Saber has no soul of its own; it is through the wielder’s comprehension and the living extension of soul into weapon that births the Saber’s soul. This threshold is difficult, and even after a lifetime of practice, many still fail to take the first step. Only a few geniuses endowed with the right talent will ever bring their Saber skill to such a level’.”
“‘Then how do I know if I am able to comprehend Saber Intent?’ the youth asked. I replied: ‘When you feel as though the saber is becoming one with you, a limb that you can comfortably wield like your arm, then you have entered the gate and touched Saber Intent’.”
Ye Tian’s eyes grew hot with emotion, certain that his experience matched exactly with the description.
He continued reading, excitement filling his face.
“‘How powerful is Saber Intent?’ Haha, the youth finished with this question. I did not answer, instead turning to the distant mountain peak. I flicked a blade of intent towards the Tian Dou Peak and split it in two before turning to the youngster: ‘Behold.’ He was stunned and could only dazedly nod. I laughed before saying again: ‘I have left in this strike my Obliteration Saber Intent. There will never be more than twenty five Martial Warriors who can climb the Tian Dou Peak’.”
“Feng Wudi. Da Huang Calendar, Year 5382, Autumn.”
En? Da Huang? Wasn’t the current calendar Shen Zhou?
What era was this Feng Wudi from?
Ye Tian furrowed his brows.
The passage ended here, but underneath the text lay a footnote. Ye Tian narrowed his eyes and focused, his face filling with shock.
“Feng Wudi: thirty thousand years ago, the Saber Sage of the Da Huang Era, allegedly an invisible powerhouse verging on the Martial God realm. The youth in the record later became the peak Saber Sovereign, Duan Tianxiang.
“Feng Wudi’s Obliteration Saber Intent has remained on Tian Dou Peak, lasting these thirty thousand years without weakening. Experts below Martial Sovereign cannot approach the peak.
“This is the account of the Legend of Tian Dou Peak, the story that has passed through our mouths for thousands of years. Listen and be amazed!”
Ye Tian slowly rolled the sheepskin scroll shut, his gaze flickering and his heart trembling.
The number one Saber Sovereign, Duan Tianyu!
A Saber Sage of an entire era, Feng Wudi!
The intent of a single strike lasting thirty thousand years! The Legend of Tian Dou Peak!
Ye Tian was in a state of shock, the power hidden in these words beyond his imagination. A strike that lasted while empires rose and fell; there indeed were powerful Martial Warriors who could cleave mountains. This was the true Martial World, the true might of the Shen Zhou Continent!
In that moment, Ye Tian longed for the world beyond his barren home.
In such a dazzling place, such a wide and magnificent land, how could he bear to waste his life without adventure?
Ye Tian felt as if his blood was boiling, never having felt so eager to leave this poor and remote land, never having felt so excited.
“Ye Tian!” Ye Feng’s voice pulled Ye Tian out of his daze and the youth quickly turned to look at his teacher.
Both Ye Feng and the Martial Instruction Elder looked emotional.
The Martial Instruction Elder smiled as he spoke: “Ye Tian, you’ve finished reading? This story is very popular on Shen Zhou Continent—almost everybody has heard it.”
Ye Tian nodded. He could easily accept that a legendary story such as this would spread like wildfire.
Even though Ye Tian didn’t truly understand how powerful a Martial Sage and a Martial Sovereign were, just by the description of Feng Wudi’s casual mountain cleaving strike, he saw that this realm was beyond his imagination. A simple gesture of the hand was capable of destroying the heavens and the earth.
This was an almost god-like power!
Ye Tian trembled, his eyes filled with burning ambition, and he felt as if his desire for strength had grown again.
“You should understand now how much of a genius you are to have comprehended Saber Intent. Even the number one Saber Sovereign comprehended it after more than ten years of practice, yet how old are you now?” The Martial Instruction Elder continued, his whole body shaking with joy.
“Sixteen!”
The Martial Instruction Elder locked his eyes onto Ye Tian, excitedly continuing: “You’re only sixteen yet you’ve already comprehended Saber Intent. You will definitely surpass the Martial Master realm in the future. Do you understand? I don’t even know the name of the realm past Martial Master, but I do know that within a ten thousand mile radius, only the Lord of Blood Jade City has entered that realm!”
Ye Tian paused. He hadn’t known the Blood Jade City Lord was such an expert, but he ultimately realized that it wasn’t so strange. The Scarlet Guard had many Martial Masters, and the funding and governance over Blood Jade City required an existence that was above even those powerful warriors.
“Ye Tian, your talent has surpassed our imaginations. None of us know what you will achieve in the future, but we are certain that you will take us out of this poor land!” Ye Feng said, his eyes gleaming as he stood before Ye Tian.
“Elder, Uncle Feng, I won’t let you down!”
Ye Tian breathed deeply as he looked at both of his excited seniors, elders and experts whom he deeply respected, and nodded firmly.
“En, we believe in you.” The Martial Instruction Elder smiled joyfully. That Ye Tian could comprehend Saber Intent implied a monstrous talent he had never even imagined. Becoming Martial Master was no longer the goal but a mere step along the way; all that remained was time and cultivation. He eagerly awaited the day when Ye Tian would grow into his power, and he wondered at Ye Tian’s future impact on the Da Yan Empire.
“Uncle Feng is already impatiently waiting for the day of your fame!” Ye Feng said, smiling.
“I don’t think you will have to wait too long!” Ye Tian replied, a small confident smile on his face. Ye Feng and the Martial Instruction Elder both sighed in admiration. Who would’ve thought their Ye Family Village would produce such a genius?
…
Time flew by and in the blink of an eye, another month had passed. Ye Tian’s cultivation had improved quite a bit, but there was still a small gap before he could break through to Level Nine Martial Artist.
It wasn’t that Ye Tian had slacked off as in the past month, he had been completely immersed in his comprehension of Saber Intent. Nothing else was more important, and he had even slowed down his cultivation.
He wielded his Scarlet Saber every waking moment, and if he was practicing his forms, he was fighting beasts in the mountainous forest, continually brushing against and touching the state of enlightenment, trying to bring it under his mastery.
Ye Tian’s talent in the Saber Dao was incredible, and after this month of hard work, he could already enter this marvelous state at will, imbuing his Saber with intent.
As a result, Ye Tian’s striking power had graduated to another level. Due to his Peak Stage Level Eight cultivation, only a single blow was required to slay a Level Nine Martial Artist beast.
It was this combination of strength and the ability to wound at distance that made Ye Tian almost invincible to those below Level Ten Martial Artist. Even Ye Feng was no longer Ye Tian’s opponent, not even with his Peak Stage Level Nine cultivation.
In the entire village, only the Village Chief could use his Peak Stage Level Ten Martial Artist cultivation to suppress and defeat Ye Tian.
But everyone knew that once Ye Tian broke through to the next stage, even their Village Chief would no longer match this youth.
Such a powerful Hunter Team Captain meant that the Ye Family Village’s days only grew more and more prosperous. Every hunt brought back a great harvest, and none of their members were ever injured, much less dead.
“Da! Da! Da!”
The present day.
A team of horses and men rode towards the village from the distant mountain path, led by a strong, black faced man. He was tall and formidably built, his aura of strength clearly indicating he was an expert.
“Eh? Strangers? That man is…” One of the guards at the village gate frowned into the distance.
“Black Face Mad Tiger? Why is the Wang Family Village coming to our Ye Family Village?” Another guard said, recognizing the oncoming entourage.