Chapter 16 Perfection—Part Six

In order to protect himself in case the old man and the little guy came to drag him out of bed in the middle of the night, Wei WuXian slept while clinging to his sword. However, the night went smoothly. On the second day, Nie HuaiSang came to him with a delighted expression, “Wei-xiong, you’re really lucky. That old man went to our sect’s Discussion Conference last night, so we won’t have classes for a few days!”

Now that the old ones were gone, the young ones could be taken care of easily! Wei WuXian immediately climbed up, beaming as he put on his boots, “What good fortune, it’s as if the Heavens are blessing me with their clouds.”

Jiang Cheng stood aside, carefully cleaning his sword, and poured cold water on this idea, “When he comes back, you will still receive your punishment.”

Wei WuXian replied, “Why should the living worry about what happens after they die? I’ll live freely for as long as I can. Let’s go. I don’t believe I can’t find a pheasant on this Lan Sect mountain.”

The three of them walked together, passing through the Cloud Recesses’ living room. Suddenly, Wei WuXian stopped and called out, “There are two little brats… Lan Zhan!”

Several people emerged from the room. Of the two youths in front, both looked as if they were carved from ice and jade, both wearing identical snow-white robes, and both had sword tassels fluttering in the wind, alongside ribbons on their clothes. The only difference was their moods and facial expressions. Wei WuXian knew immediately that, if the stern-faced one was Lan WangJi, the gentle one must be the other Jade of the Lan Sect—ZeWu-Jun, Lan XiChen.

When Lan WangJi saw Wei WuXian, he frowned, staring at him with a gaze that was almost “glaring.” As if he would be stained if he stared any longer, he averted his gaze and stared into the distance. Lan XiChen, on the other hand, smiled, “And you…?”

Jiang Cheng showed his respect by greeting, “Jiang WanYin from Yunmeng.”

Wei WuXian mengikuti, “Wei WuXian dari Yunmeng.”

Lan XiChen returned the salute. Nie HuaiSang whispered softly, “Brother XiChen.”

Lan XiChen turned to him, “HuaiSang, some time ago, when I came back from Qinghe, your brother asked about your studies. How are you doing? Will you be able to graduate this year?”

Nie HuaiSang replied, “Generally speaking, yes…” He looked like a wilted cucumber, looking at Wei WuXian helplessly. Wei WuXian grinned, “ZeWu-Jun, what’s the purpose of you two dating?”

Lan XiChen, “To eradicate the water ghost. We are short of manpower, so I went back to find WangJi.”

Lan WangJi said coldly, “Brother, we don’t need to talk any further. This matter cannot be delayed; it’s time for us to leave.”

Wei WuXian hurried, “Wait, wait, wait. I know how to catch water ghosts. ZeWu-Jun, why don’t you just take us with you?”

Lan XiChen smiled wordlessly. Lan WangJi said, “That’s against the rules.”

Wei WuXian, “How could that be against the rules? We used to always catch water ghosts in Yunmeng. Besides, we’re on vacation these days.”

Yunmeng is rich in lakes and water, so it’s full of water ghosts. It’s true that the Jiang Sect’s people are skilled in this, and Jiang Cheng also wants to make up for the Yunmeng Sect’s loss of face during their stay in the Lan Sect. “Yes. ZeWu-Jun, we will definitely help.”

“No need. The GusuLan Sect is also…” Before Lan WangJi could finish, Lan XiChen said with a smile, “Alright then. Thank you very much for your help. Make some preparations, and we can set off together. HuaiSang, are you coming too?”

Nie HuaiSang wanted to come along as well, but he remembered his older brother when he met Lan XiChen. He grimaced silently, not daring to indulge, “I’ll go first and come back to review…” With this action, he hoped Lan XiChen would put in a few good words for him to his older brother. Wei WuXian and Jiang Cheng returned to their rooms to prepare.

Lan WangJi stared at them from behind, his brows furrowed in confusion, “Brother, why did you decide to bring them along? Exterminating ghosts isn’t something to joke about.”

Lan XiChen replied, “The chief disciple and only son of Sect Leader Jiang are quite famous in Yunmeng. They probably know more than just jokes.”

Although Lan WangJi didn’t express his opinion, the words “I disagree” were clearly written on his face.

Lan XiChen spoke again, “And, you also want him to leave, don’t you?”

Lan WangJi was stunned.

Lan XiChen, “I only agreed because you seemed to want Sect Leader Jiang’s chief disciple to come with you.”

Silence enveloped them, as if the air had frozen.

After a while, Lan WangJi finally answered, speaking with difficulty, “There is no such thing.”

He wanted to defend himself further, but Wei WuXian and Jiang Cheng had already taken their swords and headed towards them, so Lan WangJi had to shut his mouth. They mounted their swords[1] and set off.

The place the water ghost visited was called Caiyi Town, about ten kilometers away from the Cloud Recess.

Caiyi Town is connected by waterways. The town can be a dense web of rivers enclosing the city, or a web of houses crowded on either side of the stream. The houses have white walls and gray roofs, and the rivers are filled with boats filled with baskets and people. On the riverbanks, they sell flowers, fruit, bamboo crafts, pastries, tea, and silk.

Gusu was in the Jiangnan region, and all the sounds were soft and gentle. When two boats collided, and several jugs of rice wine spilled, even the quarrel between the two boatmen sounded like the chirping of orioles. Although Yunmeng had many lakes, not many small towns had that much water. Wei WuXian found it quite interesting. He bought two jugs of rice wine and gave one to Jiang Cheng, “Gusu people speak so sweetly. How can this be considered arguing? If they saw how Yunmeng people argue, they’d probably be scared to death… Why are you staring at me, Lan Zhan? It’s not that I’m stingy enough to buy you something—aren’t people from your sect forbidden from drinking alcohol?”

After a short stay, the group boarded about ten narrow boats and rowed towards the area where the water ghosts gathered. Gradually, the number of houses along the riverbank dwindled, and the river’s flow became calmer. Wei WuXian and Jiang Cheng each had a boat, racing to row faster while listening to the local news regarding the water ghosts.

This waterway led to a large lake in front of them, called Biling Lake. Caiyi Town hadn’t been haunted by water ghosts for decades, but over the past few months, people had begun falling into this path and Biling Lake. Boats carrying goods had also sunk for no apparent reason. A few days ago, Lan XiChen had cast several nets in this area. He had hoped to catch one or two water ghosts, but instead, he had caught around a dozen. He had cleaned the bodies and taken them to a nearby part of town, only to discover that some of the bodies were unknown to the locals and still unclaimed. Yesterday, he had cast the nets again and caught several more.

Wei WuXian said, “It seems like the corpses didn’t sink anywhere else and are floating here as well. Water ghouls are very picky about where they go. Often, the only place they settle is where they sank, and they usually don’t leave from there.”

Lan XiChen nodded, “That’s right. That’s why I thought this wasn’t a trivial matter, and asked WangJi to come along, just in case something happened.”

Wei WuXian asked, “ZeWu-Jun, those water ghosts are very clever. If we take the boat and stay like this for too long, won’t they hide underwater and never come out? Won’t we have to keep searching forever? What if we can’t find them?”

Lan WangJi replied, “We’ll wait until we find them. After all, we’ve already done what we had to do.”

Wei WuXian, “Just by using a net?”

Lan XiChen, “Right. Does the YunmengJiang Sect have any other methods?”

Wei WuXian smiled but didn’t answer. Of course, the YunmengJiang Sect also used nets. However, since he was a skilled swimmer, he always jumped into the river and dragged the water ghosts out. However, this method was too dangerous; he definitely couldn’t do it in front of the Lan Sect’s people. If it got to Lan QiRen’s ears, he would definitely be lectured again. He changed the topic, “It would be good if there was something that could attract the water ghosts, like fishing bait. Or something that could show them the direction, like a compass.”

Jiang Cheng said, “Look down at the water and concentrate on finding it. You’re letting your imagination run wild again.”

Wei WuXian, “Cultivating and riding a sword were once just a fantasy!”

As he looked down, he happened to see the bottom of the boat Lan WangJi was on. An idea struck him, and he shouted, “Lan Zhan, look at me!”

At that moment, Lan WangJi was on high alert. Hearing those words, he looked up, only to see Wei WuXian’s bamboo oar sweeping up a splash of water and hitting him. With a tap of his foot, Lan WangJi leaped lightly onto another boat, avoiding the splash. He was furious, thinking to himself that, of course, Wei WuXian was here to play around, “Pathetic!”

However, Wei WuXian kicked the side of the boat he was standing on, and flipped it over using a bamboo oar. At the bottom of the boat, there were three water ghosts with swollen faces and pale skin, clinging tightly to the wooden planks!

A disciple standing nearby immediately pressed the three. Lan XiChen smiled, “Young Master Wei, how did you know they were under the boat?”

Wei WuXian tapped the side of the boat, “Simple! The water displacement is wrong. He’s the only one standing on the boat, but the displacement is greater than a boat carrying two people. There must be something at the bottom of the boat.”

Lan XiChen praised him, “You are indeed experienced.”

Wei WuXian’s oars glided gently through the water, and the boat’s speed increased, until he was right next to Lan WangJi’s boat. He said, “Lan Zhan, I accidentally splashed water on you. Those water ghouls are very clever. If I had said it out loud, they would have heard and run away. Hey, don’t ignore me. Why aren’t you looking at me, Second Young Master Lan?”

Lan WangJi finally lowered himself and glanced at him, “Why did you come?”

Wei WuXian said sincerely, “I’m here to apologize to you. Last night was my fault. I was indeed at fault.”

Lan WangJi’s expression was a bit gloomy, most likely because he still hadn’t forgotten how Wei WuXian had “apologized” to him. Wei WuXian asked even though he already knew the answer, “Why do you look so gloomy? Don’t worry. Today, I’m truly here to help.”

Jiang Cheng couldn’t stand watching the scene any longer, “If you want to help, stop babbling and come here!”

A student shouted, “The net is moving!”

Sure enough, the net rope began to sway. Wei WuXian beamed, “Here it is, here it is!”

Long, thick hair formed a black satin veil, billowing and billowing around the boat. Between them, a pair of terrifying hands gripped the sides of the boat. Lan WangJi drew his sword, Bichen, with his backhand, and sliced ​​off about ten wrists on the left side of the boat, leaving only palms with fingers deeply embedded in the wood. Just as he was about to cut off the wrists on the right side, a red light flashed, and Wei WuXian’s sword returned to its sheath.

The strange water movement had stopped, and the net had returned to its calm. Although Wei WuXian’s sword had struck with incredible speed just a moment ago, Lan WangJi could already tell that the sword he was carrying was of exceptional quality. He asked with a serious expression, “What is the name of this sword?”

Wei WuXian menjawab, “Suibian[2].”

Lan WangJi stared at him. Wei WuXian thought he had heard wrong, so he repeated it again, “Suibian.”

Lan WangJi frowned and refused, “This sword has a spirit. Calling it whatever you like is impolite.”

Wei WuXian sighed, “Think outside the box, okay? I’m not asking you to call it whatever you like, but it just so happens that my sword is called ‘Suibian.’ Take a look.” As he spoke, he handed the sword to Lan WangJi, who was then asked to examine the characters engraved on it. Surrounded by lines and patterns, two ancient characters were engraved on the scabbard. Sure enough, it was “Suibian.”

For a moment, Lan WangJi was at a loss for words.

Wei WuXian expressed his consideration, “You don’t need to speak. I know you must want to ask why this sword is called that. Everyone asks if there’s any special meaning to it. Actually, there’s no special meaning at all. It’s just that, when Uncle Jiang gave me this sword and asked me what I wanted to call it, I had already thought of over twenty names, but none of them satisfied me. I thought I could let Uncle Jiang name it, so I said, ‘Whatever!’ But, who would have thought, after this sword was forged and unsheathe, these two characters were on it. Uncle Jiang said, ‘Then why not name this sword Suibian?’ Honestly, this name is not bad either, right?”

Finally, Lan WangJi spoke through gritted teeth, “… Ridiculous!”

Wei WuXian slung his sword over his shoulder, “You boring person. Don’t you see how fun this name is? It’s very effective at deceiving serious people like you, and it always works. Haha!”

At the same time, from within the clear lake, a long shadow darted around the small boat. After Jiang Cheng had finished off the water ghosts on his side, he was still keeping an eye out for anyone he missed. Seeing the shadow, he immediately shouted, “Here he comes again!”
Translator’s Note:
Cultivators have the ability to use their swords to float in the air as a means of travel. This usually uses spiritual energy and is one of the things a cultivator learns in their early stages. They simply stand on the sword (as if it were a skateboard).
The word suibian in Chinese means “anything.”