Sword Dynasty
Episode 3
This is the recipe used to record the wine-making procedure.
This is a rose.
That is a sweet Osmanthus flower.
Are you nervous?
It's because…
I don't know how to make wine.
My nephew always reminds me
of the more than ten steps of the wine-making procedure.
But I always forget them.
So I made this as a reminder.
You can go back now.
Yes.
I want to talk to Director Ye
about some private matters.
Murong Cheng.
He was not a clever boy,
but he was still young.
And he had good practice potential and was quick
in making breakthroughs to reach higher realms.
I thought
I would have the opportunity to train him.
But I didn't expect
him to be killed by you in one stroke
before I got the chance
to teach him.
What does Murong Cheng's death
have to do with you?
You don't have to
feign ignorance.
You knew he would marry into my family,
but you still killed him.
If you don't give me a satisfactory settlement today,
who will respect
my family in the future?
I'll show you respect
by taking a sword stroke by you.
The one and only female director
in Heng is truly remarkable.
You are straightforward indeed.
I'm starting to like your personality.
Cut the crap.
Come on.
It's "Water Born in Heaven".
Your practice has entered the seventh realm--
the Mountain-moving Realm.
It's getting interesting.
Now I'm satisfied.
You'll suffer a lot
after taking this stroke.
But
I will ensure your safety for a while.
It hurts.
It hurts, really.
So you're Ding Ning?
Your Excellency,
have we met before?
Your body is indeed of yang hyperactivity.
Your Excellency,
are you okay?
You can come out now.
You shouldn't have stalked her.
It was she who came to test me first in the tavern.
What information did she get?
I concealed my practice level
according to your instruction.
She didn't notice anything, I suppose.
She also tested me just now,
so I think
she won't suspect us anymore.
Countless people in Fengming
want me to die.
So I must look strong in front of everyone.
Only in this way
can I survive and thrive.
I reminded you long ago
that Marquis Fang wouldn't let you off
if you killed Murong Cheng.
Don't you want to know
whether Song Shenshu died of the Nine-death Silkworm?
I can tell you:
yes.
Song Shenshu died of the Nine-death Silkworm,
and Marquis Dugu died of Moshi Swordsmanship.
Their deaths must have something to do with That Man.
Does he
really have such a disciple?
This is the Golden Balm.
Chen Xuan,
who on earth is the man
in the water dungeon?
Qianxue,
you must like these flowers.
I never told you that
I like sweet Osmanthus flowers.
I smelled the scent of the sweet Osmanthus flower on your body
when I taught you swordsmanship recently.
That was the first time I smelled a flower scent
on your body.
Do you like them?
Yes.
You've received flowers again.
Are they from Prince Liling
who wants to court you?
Why are you angry with me?
Do you think they're from master?
I know you hate him.
It's not because I hate him.
I know they're from him because no one else knows that
the sweet Osmanthus flower is my favorite flower.
The next fish may rise to the bait soon.
Is anybody there?
It's closing time.
Please come earlier tomorrow.
I come here not for wine.
Are you looking for my aunt?
Please come earlier tomorrow.
I'm looking for you.
Me?
What for?
Who are you?
Not long ago,
a man in a yellow robe
came here and asked you
to pay the rent,
but you didn't pay.
He said he would come again in a few days,
but hasn't showed up yet.
Hey.
Are you working for Liangcenglou
or Jinlintang?
Liangcenglou.
More specifically,
I am in charge of all the businesses
of Liangcenglou.
You do not look like the owner of Liangcenglou.
You are too weak.
My name is indeed Wang Taixu, which means "too weak".
It's hard work to struggle with Jinlintang
for territory.
That may explain my weakness.
What a bold guy you are to challenge a big shot
like Prince Liling.
I've been living in Fengming for many years,
but I've seldom met a person
as meticulous,
as insightful, and as clear-headed as you.
I'm in need of such an advisor,
or if you will,
a partner like you.
But I also want to hear
your opinion
on the conflict between Liangcenglou
and Jinlintang.
Actually,
you're now in a similar situation
to Prince Liling.
For the next step,
if you can gain a firm foothold here
and gobble up Jinlintang,
then your status in Fengming
will reach a higher stage.
But now,
a crucial problem is that
there're also
numerous risks in doing so.
Liangcenglou is now like a ship full of holes,
sailing in wind and rain.
What is it that makes you think
I would board this ship?
What do you want in return?
I can give you
anything I have.
Anything…
Including the admission to any sect?
You want to be a practitioner?
I want to join
the Minshan Sword Sect.
Do you know that
the sect only recruits
several dozen disciples each year?
Do you have any idea
how many
young practitioners at your age
there will be in Heng
or in the neighboring states?
I cannot
get the direct admission for you,
but I can let you join those sects
that are qualified to take part
in the Minshan Swordsmanship Tournament.
You'll become a disciple
of the Minshan Sword Sect
as long as you pass the test at the tournament.
But why do you
want to join the Minshan Sword Sect?
Someone told me that
I would not be able to live past the age of 30.
I was born with yang hyperactivity,
which causes hyperactivity of the qi of the five internal organs.
It's a premature aging disease.
You mean
the Minshan Sword Sect
has some martial practices
that can make you live longer.
I think
you can help me,
and I
can help you, too.
How can I help you?
The reason
why Liangcenglou is now in a passive position
is that our former backer, Marquis Dugu,
was assassinated a few days ago.
I believe
that's why Jinlintang
had the nerve to attack us.
It turns out Marquis Dugu
had been your backer?
Let's go for a walk.
What for?
Since you want cooperation,
shouldn't you inform me
of the detailed situation of Liangcenglou?
Sure.
Aunt!
I'm going out with a friend.
Come back early.
I think the reason why Jinlintang has been so aggressive recently
is because we have lost our backer.
It might not be simply because of sectarian struggle
that they are trying to steal business
from Marquis Dugu.
Perhaps
it is related
to officials at the court,
or some new power
coming from a place other than Fengming.
Please continue.
There's only one person
in Fengming who dares to ignore the King's opinions,
that is, Chancellor Li.
And I don't think he would care about
a small group like Liangcenglou.
If he were really the initiator,
perhaps
he would have killed all of you,
hired an obedient assistant, and taken his time
doing this business.
The other aristocrats in Fengming
have to take into account the opinions of the King and Chancellor Li.
So I guess
the initiator should be
a new power from outside Fengming.
But what I'm curious about is
what on earth had happened during the struggle
which made you so weak ever since?
We killed 53 people in their group,
six of whom were practitioners.
Their leader Tang Que
was not in Fengming during the incident.
What did they do after that?
Tang Que managed to persuade Chubby Zhang from Leiyutang
to negotiate with us this evening.
Apart from good timing,
you also have all the other advantages:
favorable location and solidarity.
From whatever perspective,
it all seems like they should be begging for mercy
and beseeching you to stop the killing.
Although the present situation
is favorable to you,
there's also great danger behind it.
Their unconditional compromise
is to make you lower your guard and attend the banquet.
Besides,
Tang Que's backer
wouldn't surrender so easily.
He would certainly ask Jinlintang to take some actions.
You must accompany me
to the banquet this evening.
If I can get through this,
Liangcenglou and I
shall reward you for your help in the future.
Chubby Zhang
will come here with his men in a while.
A pale-faced intellectual will be by his side.
That's his adopted son, Zhong Xiu.
Zhong Xiu is probably the best practitioner now
in Leiyutang.
And there's a one-eyed man
called Tang Mengchen.
Among the notable practitioners in Jinlintang,
the one with the highest level of practice is Tang Que,
who has entered the fifth realm.
Is that a master you've invited?
So sorry to keep you waiting.
Mr. Wang,
we didn't bring extra men
to this banquet,
according to your instruction.
How about you speak first,
since you're the host?
Since we're in a negotiation,
I just have a simple request:
if Jinlintang
never shows up
in Fengming again,
then this matter can be settled.
I really don't know what gives you such confidence.
Is it your pomposity,
or the street boy,
or that
old fortune teller?
They're enough to take care of all of you.
I'm from Baiyang Cave.
Don't overestimate yourself.
Fragile boy.
We have enough dead people this evening.
You can go now.
Thank you, Mr. Li.
The boy you picked has potential.
He can join my sect.
The fight is over?
From now on,
you're a practitioner at Baiyang Cave.
Your Majesty,
there has been one vacancy among the Eleven Marquises
in Heng ever since Marquis Dugu died.
According to the convention of Heng,
candidates for this title should be selected from the army.
What I am presenting
is a list of the candidates
whose contributions I think are qualified for the title.
Please make your decision, Your Majesty.
General,
shall we enter the palace now?
No.
I'll purge some Fengming natives
from the army and
get a few things settled.
Do you really have to do this?
I must become a practitioner
as soon as possible.
You know what Wang Taixu told me
the other day,
and you should understand that
to join Baiyang Cave so easily
is a rare opportunity
that I've never met all these years.
So I mustn't miss it.
But it's too hasty.
Our original plan
is for you to recover your health
before beginning any practice.
Even though you have Nine-death Silkworm to protect you,
it's still too dangerous for a person with yang hyperactivity
to be without mutual practice.
You know that
a little carelessness
will lead to death, right?
Don't worry,
I will be more careful than before.
I won't lose my life so easily.
You're determined to join the Minshan Sword Sect.
Is it because you want to practice the Life-sustaining Magic Art?
Yes.
The Life-sustaining Magic Art
can not only make me survive,
but also make me stronger.
What should I do next?
Deal with Marquis Fang?
There's no rush for that.
Your Natal Sword is unfinished,
so what you should do next,
is go to the bedroom and wait for me
to do the mutual practice.
You…
Morning, Mr. Wang!
Morning, Ding Ning.
Thank you
for keeping your promise.
A man of the martial art world
should be true to his words.
I have thrown the bodies of those dead men
from Jinlintang into the river,
as you instructed.
Is this enough to cause a stir?
Will it make the people behind it
come out?
And what to do after that?
What's the next step?
Aunt.
I'm leaving.
The wind blows silently.
The hero's sword cuts into the throat.
He sneers at the world.
His name is immortal.
A cup of Hero Wine.
In a cycle of life and death,
there's no betray or regret,
but the loved one won't come back.
Looking back on the old days,
the hero finds his hair already grey.
But he has no wish to live his life all over again.
Your disciple Ding Ning
has taken actions.
From now on,
there's no turning back for us.
But you don't need to thank me.
It's not for you
that I do this.
I never forget for a moment
what you did to my family, the Gongsun family,
or the extermination of my family members.
The hero's fate can't be changed.
Many springs and autumns have passed.
His unaltered love is wasted
and buried in the soil.
Who are you?
The Nine-death Silkworm Martial Art has never been taught to outsiders.
You are
Miss Gongsun?
You know me?
I'm the only inheritor of my master's
Nine-death Silkworm Martial Art.
So he let you practice here?
My master told me
that if there's some crisis happening to the Bashan Sword Field one day,
I must give this sword
back to the Gongsun family.
That's all
about what happened to us.
Do you mean that the whole Jinlintang was nearly exterminated
by a boy from a tavern
and a practitioner from Baiyang Cave?
Yes.
There's no need
to keep a worthless henchman.
Locate the whereabouts of that boy,
by hook or by crook.
Your Majesty,
Baiyang Cave still hasn't surrendered the spirit vein,
and now they are meddling in the strife of Jinlintang.
Your family want to hear
your opinion on this matter.
Any institution for practice
is a treasure of Heng,
on the conditions that they are loyal to,
and do not impinge on the Kingdom of Heng.
Baiyang Cave
is indeed too conceited.
It's time to let them pay the price.
Please give a specific instruction
on how to punish them, Your Majesty.
Incorporate Baiyang Cave into Qingteng Sword School.
There will be no Baiyang Cave
in Fengming.
There's another thing.
Give Liang Lian and Jinlintang a warning:
"Now that you're in Fengming,
it's not like fighting a war against an enemy state.
You should be gentler.
The situation is complicated in Fengming,
so don't be so arrogant as to think
you can destroy anyone easily."
Yes, Your Majesty.
We'll part here.
Thank you.
You're welcome.
Are these people coming to welcome you?
I don't think they are coming to welcome me
into Baiyang Cave.
Ding Ning,
Let me share a saying with you:
"Bear an insult for one minute,
and you'll be spared trouble for one hundred days."
Good bye.
Since when
can an outsider enter our Baiyang Cave
as long as he wants to?
Jiang Li.
Please calm down, fellows.
It's master's decision.
Master's decision?
Jiang Li,
this is not in accordance with the rules.
It's unfair to allow him to get in
without taking the admission test.
It is not only unfair to us,
but also unfair to those
who had failed to join Baiyang Cave
in the past centuries.
Many people want to get in.
If he wants to get in, too,
first,
he should meet our requirements,
that is, he must pass our test.
I must get in there today.
Just let me know your rules.
Have you really
made up your mind?
That's what I came here for.
There's nothing I fear.
I know why Baiyang Cave suffered a mishap.
It's because you know nothing except fighting against your fellows.
Bullshit!
Who are you?
Who do you think you are!
I am what I am.
If I'm not wrong,
you are Shen Bai,
the youngest disciple at Baiyang Cave.
You father Shen Feijing
used to be a subordinate
of Nangong Pocheng.
How do you know that?
I'm from Qingteng Sword School.
My name is Nangong Caishu.
Nangong Pocheng is my father.
What's up?
If you had known my identity,
you wouldn't have cursed me like that, would you?
You call this "fairness"?
In our school,
if the headmaster has agreed
to let someone in,
we won't block the gate to prevent him
from entering the school.
It's just a simple admission test.
Why do we have to make things so complicated?
Do not think the test
is just a children's game.
More than one thousand people come here each year
to take the test,
but few
can pass it.
Please come.
Round one: the flowstone plate test.
You have to find the five luminous pellets
among a lot of pellets rotating on this plate.
You'll pass the first round
if you get three pellets right.
Those five luminous pellets
are indeed very similar
to the others.
It might not be an easy task
even if you put all the pellets on a white silk cloth.
It's much harder when the pellets are rotating.
If I were to take this test again,
I wouldn't be sure that I could pass it.
That's true.
During the previous admission tests,
more than half of the candidates
were knocked out
in the first round.
Today is my first official appearance
in front of a multitude of people in Fengming.
This first step
will determine my status in the future.
I've been keeping a low profile for too many years.
But there're more and more flowers
blooming on that wall.
Some people live in comfort,
while some others
grossly live an abominable life
in dirty water.
To pass the first round of the admission test,
one needs to calm the heart,
which is also the first thing to do
before becoming a practitioner.
Only when your mind is free from distractions
can you feel
the qi of the five internal organs in your body.
The previous shortest time for this round
was about 15 minutes.
It's impossible.
Unbelievable.
Here it is.
Not even the slightest sign of a practitioner!
You've got four right out of five.
Next round.
This is a perception clay model.
Perception is a gift.
Some people are able to calm their heart and introspect,
but they cannot perceive the qi of the five internal organs in their body
and the primordial qi of the heaven and the earth.
People without such a gift
cannot be a real practitioner.
The sword in this clay warrior's hand is hollow.
If you can perceive
the flow of the primordial qi in the model,
then you'll be able to pour the primordial qi
out of the sword.
Does that mean I'll be qualified
if I can pour the primordial qi out of the sword?
That's right.
Will I be admitted to Baiyang Cave
as a practitioner if I pass this round?