Blade - Unbound

Chapter 10: Tonight

“Grandpa, you seem to be in quite a good mood today.”

“That’s right. Don’t know why, but my chest isn’t tight, my breathing isn’t heavy... feels like I’ve suddenly let go of a lot of things. Strange... Haha! That’s life for you.”

Li Gui was acting rather oddly. He hadn’t gotten angry when he saw the damaged plaque. Instead, he even took a stroll along the fields by the village entrance, rather than squatting at the doorway smoking in silence like before.

Li Yan understood the reason perfectly. With the plaque broken and the Three Talents Demon Suppressing Coins falling out, the malicious curse placed on their family had been lifted. The three invisible blades hanging over their heads were now gone.

The effect wasn’t something visible, but all of them could feel it. Even the old man sensed it, in his own way. Perhaps because of his improved mood, Li Gui squatted by the door after dinner, took a few puffs of his pipe, and suddenly began belting out an old Qin tune he hadn’t sung in a long time.

“Golden ring upon my head, cord-wrapped hat in place, Nine Palaces Eight Trigrams robe draped across my frame. Silken sash tied with life-returning herbs, cloud-climbing boots upon my feet...

“This is mysterious, this is wondrous. Across the Three Mountains and Five Peaks I roam! Ask me my name and lineage? Turn my head, split my neck, I am Shen Gongbao!”

The Yellow River Formation, from the Qin Opera.

This world also had the Investiture of the Gods, and it was widely known. The Yellow River Formation was especially beloved in the Guanzhong Plains.

Inside the house, as his grandfather’s opera echoed, Li Yan was squatting on a stool, steadily grinding his Guanshan blade against a whetstone.

Clang! Clang!

The rough and powerful aged voice blended with the rhythm of sharpening steel.

As the sun dipped below the horizon, Li Yan lifted the blade and inspected it. The edge gleamed cold and sharp.

***

The Earth God shrine originated from the practice of ancient land deity worship. According to the Book of Rites, besides the great deities, there were also earth spirits, later known as the Earth God. The Five Earth Spirits referred to the altar of the land itself.

It could be said that this belief had persisted among the common people since ancient times. Even the current dynasty had issued decrees. For every hundred households, an altar had to be established to worship the gods of earth and grain.

Thus, Earth God shrines were found everywhere across the land. Of course, their scale and the strength of incense offerings varied. In the Guanzhong Plains, the people lived off the land. They weren’t afraid of hardship, but they feared unpredictable weather. Thus the Earth God and the Dragon King shrines always received abundant offerings. The one in Li Clan’s Fort was no exception.

The shrine itself wasn’t large. It was just a small structure built with blue bricks and yellow clay by the roadside, barely taller than a man and no more than five paces wide or long. Calling it a shrine was a little bit of a stretch. It was a little more than what someone would have in their homes, and the structure could barely block the wind and rain.

Inside stood statues of the Earth God and Earth Goddess. Their smiles were kind, but with their paint peeling and fading, they looked oddly eerie under the moonlight. Before the altar, ash and spent candles piled up like a mound. Red ribbons for blessings were tied to the surrounding trees, showing how popular the shrine was.

That night, the moon shone like frost. There was a strange chill in the surroundings as mist drifted through the night.

Eventually, a flicker of light appeared from the village. Clad in rough black cloth, with his pants bound properly to his legs, Li Yan approached the shrine with his Guanshan blade sheathed at his waist. In one hand, he carried a basket, while the other held a lantern.

To avoid being seen, he wore a wide straw hat. He seemed pretty mysterious as he walked alone in the dark. Stopping before the shrine, Li Yan raised his head slightly. His gaze was sharp and cold under the brim of his hat. Sharpening his blade that afternoon had also honed his killing intent.

After ensuring there was no one around, he set down his basket and took out his offerings. He had fruits, incense, candles, and even roasted meat and a jar of wine. He arranged the food offerings carefully and lit the candles.

With those out of the way, he rubbed his face, forced a bright smile, broke the seal on the jar, and spoke softly. “Grandpa Earth God, I’ve come to see you. You’ve watched me grow up, after all. You’re practically an elder.

“I haven’t offered you incense before, that’s on me. But you can’t just let that thing run wild, right? Tonight, let’s work together and drive out the evil being. What do you say?”

After learning that the world he was in wasn’t simple, Li Yan knew when to change his attitude. He usually couldn’t be bothered with offering incense, but at such a time, it was better to say a few respectful words... just in case.

And indeed, the shrine felt completely different. He could already smell the strong scent of incense from three hundred chi away. After placing the offerings and lighting the candles, he felt a faint warmth. It felt similar to his grandfather’s plaque, but slightly more gentle.

Meanwhile, inside the red pouch at his waist, the blade tassel grew colder. They were two completely different forces, yet they did not clash. As Widow Wang had said, the coins were refined under imperial auspices and consecrated at Mount Tai. They were proper ritual artifacts. Yin and yang could oppose each other, but they could also complement each other. freeweɓnovel.cøm

Li Yan didn’t fully understand the theory, but he could read people. He could tell that Widow Wang meant him no harm. She truly wanted to destroy the Cold Altar Soldier.

Thinking about it, Li Yan chuckled, “Grandpa Earth God, if you don’t say anything, I’ll take it as you are agreeing to help!”

He lit three sticks of incense and bowed sincerely. After placing them, he kowtowed three times, then followed Widow Wang’s instructions. He removed the red pouch and placed the tassel before the altar.

Immediately, he sensed a difference. Though nothing seemed to happen, he could smell the change. The warm aura that came from the shrine was wrapping around the tassel. He was no practitioner of the mystic path. Without the shrine’s support, the blade’s killing aura could chill him to the bone within moments. Here, he could endure it a little longer.

Seeing that no accidents happened throughout the process, Li Yan finally relaxed a little. He got to his feet and circled the shrine, memorizing the terrain. When it came to night combat, familiarity with the surroundings was key.

The shrine was backed against a small mound and the main road lay less than a hundred paces away. Trees stood in the distance. The ground was flat without a single ditch. The most important part was the flat ground. Li Yan knew he wouldn’t need to be afraid of tripping.

When he finished, he returned to the shrine, sat cross-legged, and rested the blade across his knees. Glancing at the sky once to gauge the time, he closed his eyes to prepare himself. Behind him, the blade tassel remained on the altar.

According to Widow Wang, it could only be used after the Cold Altar Soldier possessed a body. Otherwise, it might scare it away. Incense smoke drifted around him as he waited, and the smile on the Earth God’s face never faded.

Finally, the time arrived. It was a special hour, and Li Yan felt it clearly from where he sat within the shrine’s range. The yin energy in the area had peaked. Even the warmth of the shrine seemed suppressed as cold seeped up from the ground. However, there was a faint spark of yang hidden within. It was the hour of the rat.

Though small, the rat carried vitality. It could gnaw a gap in the chaos between heaven and earth, allowing yang energy to rise. That was the birth of the saying: “The rat bite opens the heavens.”

That was why the rat came first among the zodiac.

However, midnight was also when dark spirits were the most active. The yang energy of humans was weakened, making it much easier for such things to take advantage of the situation.

Suddenly, Li Yan’s eyes snapped open. They were cold as could be.

On the distant road, a swirl of wind rose from nowhere, carrying dust as it spun in place. It stood out under the moonlight.

At the same time, Li Yan could smell it. It was the same cold, bloody stench he couldn’t be more familiar with. The chill on his back grew colder with each passing moment.

He knew that the thing had placed a curse on him. No matter where he fled, it could follow. Feeling his aura, the whirlwind approached. It blew straight for the shrine, but before it could strike at him, it was blocked.

It battered at the boundary left and right, but was stymied every time. The wind howled as the stench thickened. Then, the sound changed as it reached Li Yan’s ears.

“Kid, where are you? Come... Come home with me!”

The voice was aged and slightly sorrowful. It belonged to his grandfather. However, Li Yan simply sneered. He might not be a practitioner, but he had already heard it once already. He had also learned a few things.

First, the Cold Altar Soldier was intelligent and cunning, but it behaved more like a beast. It followed its instincts and didn’t possess deep human reasoning. Otherwise, it wouldn’t have fallen for the same trick two nights in a row, getting more enraged with each failure.

Second, it might be able to manipulate someone that has been marked, but that was it. Since Li Gui hadn’t been cursed, he heard nothing. Also, it preyed on weakness. Li Yan’s greatest fear was losing his grandfather, which was why it used Li Gui’s voice every time.

Third, the thing could hide well. Li Yan had tried searching for it during the day but failed to find any traces. Not even the dogs in the village noticed. They only reacted when it had been injured the night before.

As Widow Wang had said, the Cold Altar Soldier wanted his body. If he stayed within the shrine’s protection and resisted its illusions, it would have no choice but to possess something to get close to him!

Her prediction was entirely correct. Soon, things changed. As the wind battered the shrine, the smell of incense surged. Warmth flooded Li Yan’s chest, weakening the chill on his back.

The voices ringing in his mind faded.

Come on, Earth God!

Li Yan couldn’t help but cheer silently. Soon, the strange wind started to retreat. From the looks of it, it was leaving.

How could Li Yan let that happen? He didn’t have time to keep playing games with it. The plaque at home was already destroyed. Moreover, if he missed this chance, his grandfather could be in real danger the next time.

Having thought of something at the very last moment, Li Yan ran to the edge of the shrine’s protection. “Hey, why are you in a rush to leave? Come on, let’s play a little more!

“Look, I’m out of the shrine’s protection! Hey, I’m back in! Come at me! If you have the ability to do so, come get me!”

Li Yan’s blatant provocation threw it into a frenzy. The strange wind roared violently. Li Yan quickly ran back into the protection of the Earth God shrine, but when the wind passed, the stench was gone.

Did it really leave?!

When Li Yan was about to curse his luck, his back turned cold once again.

Rustle...

From the trees in the distance, birds burst forth, flying away in terror. A wolf emerged through the mist with its eyes glowing red. Then, another followed, and another. They appeared from different parts of the treeline, but before long, they had completely encircled the shrine.