Blade - Unbound

Chapter 4: Substitute Statue

A statue of a Daoist sat on a lotus pedestal in his dantian. From its appearance alone, one could tell it was ancient beyond measure. Its facial features had long since been worn smooth, and even the folds of its robes had faded into indistinct lines.

At first glance, it looked completely ordinary. It was no different from the weathered relics scattered in the wilderness. Yet three clusters of faint blue flames burned quietly above its head and upon both shoulders.

This statue was the very thing that had brought Li Yan into this world.

In his previous life, Li Yan had often traveled for work, frequently visiting museums and antique markets in each country. Naturally, he knew his limits. He had some knowledge, but he was no professional. He mostly looked around and never bought anything. Mostly.

For some reason, he had been drawn to the utterly unremarkable statue sitting on a roadside stall. It appeared to be nothing more than a poorly made fake.

That was the only thing he had ever bought.

Not long after, he had transmigrated. frёeωebɳovel.com

He had studied it thoroughly over the years. He had no idea who had made it or where it came from, but he had figured out what it did. It acted like a substitute doll. The three flames atop its head and shoulders could take his place every time a fatal calamity. In essence, he had three chances to return to life.

The statue also had another function: damage transfer. Be it internal injuries, external injuries, or even being poisoned, he could transfer it all to the statue. That was why his encounter with Third Blindy had resulted in a small scratch to the statue’s neck.

Simply put, he was like Deadpool but with certain limits. The presence of the statue was one of the reasons he dared face Third Blindy.

Ever since he’d transmigrated, he had also been training like a madman. Built-up fatigue and even the injuries he suffered from overtraining were being transferred to the statue.. As the saying goes, prolonged illness makes for a good doctor. His precise control over his own body had been built up at the cost of countless injuries. Even his pale skin was a side effect of constantly transferring damage.

Now, though the statue looked undamaged on the outside, it was riddled with cracks within. Li Yan knew that he had to be more careful going forward, and that he should not rely too much on it. If the accumulated damage grew too severe, one of the flames could go out. Thankfully, with his current level of control, he could easily stop before crossing his limits. The Ten Foundational Stances now came naturally to him, and injuries were no longer a concern.

After warming up, Li Yan started training again. What looked like a routine sequence was anything but. Each movement shifted unpredictably, flowing into the next. These moves came from the martial arts of his family: the Thirty-Six Cloud Hands, Nine Route Legs, and the Thirty-Six Grappling Techniques. These were the foundation; Li Yan took parts of each and freely reassembled them into his own forms. Real combat techniques were never as flashy and elegant as choreographed routines. Only true experts could tell how deadly Li Yan’s moves were.

In the past, Heidan had been considered the strongest among the youths in the village. He had even grown arrogant because of it... until one day, when he accidentally ran into Li Yan while the latter was practicing. A single glance sent a chill down his spine and made him quickly realize that no matter how good he was, there was always someone better out there.

Li Yan’s movements were all heavy and powerful. Each strike snapped sharply through the air.

According to the classifications recorded in the General Compendium of Military Arts, he had already reached the peak of the Light Jin Realm, which was no small feat. He was only fourteen, yet he was no longer an ordinary man. A standard escort agency would pay him well, no matter where he was in the jianghu.

His next step would be to infuse his qi into a membrane and strengthen his tendons. Once he achieved that, he would enter the Dark Jin Realm.

Martial arts flourished in this world. Reaching the Dark Jin Realm would place him among the strongest fighters out there. He would be able to lead missions escorting caravans or make a name for himself in the jianghu like his father.

If any martial arts schools learned of his existence, they would likely arrive bearing gifts, eager to take him as a disciple and perhaps even groom him to become a future pillar of their school.

Just then, an old and gruff snort came from within the courtyard. “Hmph. What’s the point of all this training?”

At some point, the old man had hobbled back into the courtyard with his cane.

Li Yan quickly stopped.

“Grandpa, why are you so worked up? Third Blindy was just a beast. Were you afraid I couldn’t handle it?” he chuckled.

“Third Blindy? You think I care about some damn mutt?” With a dark expression, Li Gui scoffed and knocked off some ash from his pipe. “I should never have taught you our martial arts. Hmph! Once you learn them, you develop killing intent, and then you can’t help but start trouble. Your father didn’t listen either! He ran out there to be a swordsman and got himself killed! You’re just as foolish. Do you really want to end our family line?!”

Li Yan just smiled through Li Gui’s scolding, not bothering to argue with the old man.

This world shared many similarities with his previous one, but there were just as many differences.

Martial arts were one of them. In his former life, things like forming a golden core and fighting against heaven to reach the Xiantian Realm only existed in novels. Here, they were real.

In addition, while the geography was nearly identical, history was not going in the same direction as in his previous world. They were now in the ninth year of the Yuanheng era[1] of the Great Xuan Dynasty[2]—a dynasty that had stood for a century.

Another huge difference lay in the peak of individual strength. Some renowned grandmasters could take a man’s head in the midst of an army. Some even dared to infiltrate the imperial palace for assassinations. In times of chaos, they could dominate entire regions and even shape the rise and fall of dynasties.

His grandfather had once been a fierce soldier who had reached the peak of the Dark Jin Realm, just one step away from reaching the Jin Transformation Realm. His future had been bright until he lost a leg during a border campaign.

Adding on the fact that he had offended his superior officer, all he received were a few plots of land and a plaque from the Ministry of War: “Mighty Through a Hundred Battles.”

Still, not everyone could obtain such a plaque. Li Hu could have secured a position as a constable in the county office with it, but he instead chose to roam the jianghu as a bladesman. He believed that elders should be respected, but that didn’t mean he had to follow his father’s wishes.

What happened afterward became an unrelenting thorn in Li Gui’s heart.

Thus, since the world was relatively peaceful, Li Gui wanted Li Yan to live a stable life as a farmer.

However, Li Yan was clear on the facts. No matter the era, he had to be able to defend himself. Having a blade and choosing not to use it was a fundamentally different concept from not having a blade at all.

Seeing that Li Gui was still upset, Li Yan quickly came up with an idea. He sat on the doorstep with a wide grin on his face. “Grandpa, why don’t you tell me more about the Ice Plains?”

“Hmph, how many times have you heard it already?” Li Gui snorted coldly, but in the end, he still lit his pipe again and took a few puffs. His memories slowly surfaced. “That damned place... No human should ever live there! Back then, the Northern General rebelled and colluded with foreign tribes to march south. Our army was the one that received the order to crush them. Under Commander Zhang, we pushed deep into the Ice Plains, determined to wipe those traitors out completely.

“There was nothing but snow and ice as far as the eye could see. In those forests, everything was terrifyingly large—tigers, bears, wolves... everything. That Third Blindy you killed? It’s nothing special! But the scariest thing there was the weather. The ice fog was so thick that we couldn’t see more than a dozen steps ahead. Many of our brothers froze to death on the road.

“There were also others in the forest besides the rebels. They had pale skin, red hair, and blue eyes, and they all wore animal hides. But the moment they saw us, they ran. We later learned that they were Raksha shamans from the North. We never thought that there could be any living creatures in that god-forsaken land...

“But after that, more and more of our people died. They all suffered from nightmares, and they kept screaming through the night. Once they woke, they froze into ice sculptures. Strangely enough, they died with smiles on their faces. It was just too damn bizarre.

“In the end, we finally caught up with the enemy and were just about to begin the final battle when a massive blizzard hit. Many of my old comrades died, but so did the remaining rebels. Only those of us who managed to dig ice shelters in time managed to live. I lost a leg, yes, but compared to those who are still buried in that ice... I was lucky.””

Li Yan listened in silence. The geography of the world closely resembled his original world, and from his grandfather’s description, the Ice Plains matched Siberia. Only... it was far more dangerous.

He had heard the story many times before; asking again was just a way to distract his grandfather. Though his grandfather had been scolding him for practicing martial arts, he knew how deeply his father’s death had scarred the old man.

Li Yan knew from experience that old people liked to reminisce. The campaign in the Ice Plains had been the greatest achievement of his grandfather’s life. The more he talked about it, the less he would dwell on the painful memories.

Having finished his story, the old man’s mind grew foggy again. His eyes turned dull as he stared at Li Yan. After some time, he called out, “Little Yan...”

“Yes, Grandpa?”

“Marry... a woman with a big butt.”

Li Yan frowned. “What? Women with big butts aren’t the prettiest.”

“What the hell do you know?!” snapped Li Gui. “Those with big butts have wider hips, which means it’s easier for them to bear children.” ƒreewebηoveℓ.com

“Alright, alright. Whatever you say...” Li Yan replied, though the light in his eyes dimmed slightly.

His grandfather had grown increasingly forgetful in the last two years. His health was declining as well.

When Li Yan’s father was still alive, he would return a few times each year, telling stories and secret codes of the jianghu, his strange encounters, and the legends he had heard. But even though those adventures sounded interesting, Li Yan would rather spend more time in the village if it meant his grandfather could live a few more years.

***

At the village entrance, Third Blindy’s corpse had been hung from the crooked tree. Adults who passed by glanced at it before hurrying off to the fields. After all, wolves were nothing new to them. No matter how fierce Third Blindy had been in life, all stories about it became little more than jokes now that it was dead. Working the fields mattered more.

Meanwhile, for the children, Third Blindy’s corpse became a new source of entertainment. They started chucking rocks at it.

“We hit Third Blindy!”

“Smash it! Kill the beast!”

Stones flew through the air amidst laughter, battering the hanging corpse. It swayed back and forth until its flesh turned into a bloody mess.

The tranquil moonlight soon fell on the land, but this night... felt different.

No insects chirped. No birds called. Even the frogs by the ditch had fallen silent.

At the village entrance, the mangled corpse of Third Blindy hung quietly from the tree, its blood dried black.

From the distant wheat fields, shadows stirred. Several smaller wolves crept out, raising their heads to stare at the corpse.

Li Huairen had been wrong. Wolves could hunt together, but they could also prey on their own kind. In the past, hanging wolf corpses had worked because there had been many veteran soldiers in the village. It was the sheer number of corpses that created true deterrence. A lone corpse wouldn't just fail to scare off the predators; it would instead attract nearby wolves.

Yet, as they circled Third Blindy’s corpse, the wolves hesitated. The way they moved made it obvious that they were... afraid. In the end, none of them dared approach.

Suddenly, startled by something, the wolves scattered through the wheat fields and vanished into the night.

A chilly wind rose soon after, rustling the leaves of the tree where Third Blindy hung. Its shadow swayed in the faint moonlight, resembling a beast lurking in the dark.

1. Era names were titles used in imperial China (and still used in modern Japan) for the purpose of year identification and numbering. They are a kind of motto or slogan chosen by the reigning monarch, and they mark either the new monarch’s accession or another similarly major event. The first era marked as such in China was Jianyuan (“establishing the origin,” 140-135 BC), named by Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty. ☜

2. The term “dynasty” refers to a sequence of rulers from the same family, but in imperial China, the dynasty name was not the surname of the ruler. For instance, Emperor Wu’s actual name was Liu Che. ☜