Sword Dynasty
Episode 11
Then I'll say something interesting.
Liang Jingmeng's disciple is back.
He killed Marquis Dugu
with Moshi Swordsmanship.
This joke is new.
But it's not funny.
And he killed Song Shenshu
with the Nine-death Silkworm Martial Art.
The Nine-death Silkworm
is never imparted to outsiders.
Tell me what I want,
and I'll set you free right away.
You are the adviser of the Bashan Sword Field.
That disciple of his
must be in great need of you now, right?
Think about it.
The fleet is under the command of
Director Xu from the Bureau of Rites.
The history of expeditions to overseas in search of the way of
reaching the ninth realm—the Immortality Realm
has started since the reign of His Majesty the Former King.
So we have the large iron-clad battleships
that other kingdoms don't.
Since
His Majesty advanced to the seventh realm,
he has been extremely eager to find it.
Earlier you were sent to conquer
the small island countries along the coast
and open up new routes,
which was already unprecedented.
And this time,
Director Xu was sent
to lead the army to sea.
It was really spectacular!
The ships sank deep into water,
which indicated they took lots of items.
No matter how many
practitioners and armed warriors they've taken along,
the supply is supposed to sustain them for quite a long time.
So you think
this fleet
is not coming back soon.
Director Xu is one of those most trusted
by His Majesty in the first place.
You mean
His Majesty's practice
or his health has gone wrong,
so he's in urgent
need of achieving immortality?
The Lushan Alliance Meeting is coming soon.
He has reached the eighth realm,
which is enough to guarantee the renewal of the Three Kingdoms' alliance.
Before the Lushan Alliance Meeting,
he will only take the safest means of practice,
rather than taking the risk.
So his practice
won't have any problem.
In that case,
there can't be anything wrong
with His Majesty's health and practice.
Could it be that
he thinks there's something wrong
with the next realm?
If that's the case,
it would be very serious.
By the way,
before the duel between Xue Wangxu and Liang Lian,
a practitioner in Fengming died.
It was Nangong Shang, who used to work at
the Bureau of Royal Secretaries.
He was killed by someone using Moshi Swordsmanship.
As for the disciple of That Man,
do you
have any clue?
If I had any,
I'd have told you long ago.
In the past, to anyone in Fengming,
including the Queen
and the King,
we are irreconcilable enemies,
because only in this way,
could we convince them
that we're easy
to control and deal with.
That's why we could
live a better life in Fengming.
However,
I know you better than anyone else.
Every time That Man was involved,
you would definitely show a little
something that is unable to conceal.
You're afraid that I would do something stupid
that would drag you down?
You don't have to worry about it.
Those things
have been gone for a long time.
It's already the 11th year of the Yuan Wu era
in the Kingdom of Heng.
I know what you mean.
It's just that That Man
has already been gone for too long.
It's already settled.
A lot of things
no longer work now.
But for some things,
those things
that should exist
still exist.
Master,
take care.
Aunt,
please take care of us
from now on.
Mr. Xue,
just make yourself at home.
If you need anything, you don't have to bother me.
Just go to Ding Ning.
You...
Well...
Ding Ning,
your aunt's character
suits me well.
As long as you can get used to it.
No one will refuse
to live with a fairy.
You misunderstood it.
Your room
is at the west wing next to this.
You don't care about business,
so why bother cleaning the floor?
This is different.
Everyone cleans their house, so why don't I?
When some carriages pass by,
it will blow the leaves to other people's houses.
If I don't trouble others,
trouble won't come to me.
Ding Ning!
I'm here to have a duel with you.
Come out.
Your trouble…
-…has come to you. -Ding Ning!
Go.
-No. -Ding Ning,
I'm here to have a duel you. Come out!
Go.
What do you mean?
Just ignore it.
Just go and entertain me.
Go. Go.
Ding Ning!
Let's go!
Come on.
Let's go!
Ding Ning!
Let's go!
Alright. Alright.
Let's go.
Have a look at my jars!
Who are you?
It's me,
Xie Changsheng.
What do you want?
To have a duel with you!
He came a long way here.
Even if you don't offer him a cup of hot tea,
you should be polite at least.
Look at this jar. I just finished it.
This man is so weird!
Yeah!
Why do you dress like this?
I can't even have a quiet time cleaning the floor.
Why should I be polite?
I, I dress like this
because I'm afraid you'd wound me.
To be honest,
my father sent me here.
He wanted to see
if you deserve to be my brother-in-law.
If I didn't come,
my pocket money would be cut off.
Do me a favor.
You're surely from a rich family,
which is so decisive
even on marriage.
I have nothing to do
with your sister's marriage.
Besides,
what can I get
from having a duel with you?
What do you want?
You can name them.
OK.
In that case,
if I win,
I want three Sanyang Herbs.
If I lose, forget it.
OK. If you win,
I'll give you the Sanyang Herbs.
Good.
So, shall we begin?
Yes.
Take it easy!
It's just a show. Don't fight so seriously.
It's over already?
Ding Ning,
I haven't had enough fun.
Come on. Fight a little longer!
A little longer!
No! Please!
Stop it!
No!
Stop!
Let me do it.
I'll do it.
Let me help.
Can't you let me do it myself?
You deserve the reputation.
I'll tell my father
you are the right man for my sister.
Make way, please.
I won't marry your sister.
I'll give you the Sanyang Herbs.
This man is so weird!
What happened?
Let's go!
Yeah. Let's get out of here.
It's over.
-Let's go. -Let's go.
Xie Changsheng
is interesting.
I haven't seen anyone
who would want his sister to get married so urgently.
He is gifted,
but unfortunately, he has been wasting
his talents.
Ding Ning,
how about this?
You make a bet with him
and make him my disciple too.
Considering Baiyang Cave's current situation,
let's not sabotage a young man's future.
Our situation is not that bad.
Qingteng Sword School
is still a decent institution.
Master,
tomorrow,
I'm going to Baiyang Cave
to practice on the spirit vein.
I'll go with you.
Master,
you haven't recovered yet.
And you shouldn't tire yourself with a long journey.
I can manage it myself.
OK.
Master, get some rest.
I'll be right back.
I've defeated Mr. Xie.
Shouldn't you reward me?
My engagement with Miss Xie is just for fun.
It doesn't count.
In a place like Fengming,
the higher-profiled you are,
the faster you're going to die.
I hope you'll remember this
at all times.
Vengeance is tiring.
Has Liang Lian been defeated?
Not yet.
He isn't that easy to deal with.
What you need now
is the support from a practitioner
who is strong enough.
You had my master,
but now you have none.
How is Mr. Xue now?
He'll watch the Minshan Swordsmanship Tournament.
But you don't need to look for another supporter now.
After the Minshan Swordsmanship Tournament,
maybe I'll be your supporter.
I don't mean I'll be that strong,
but that
if I become the top winner,
my status will change in the eyes
of the nobility in Fengming.
Winning the Minshan Swordsmanship Tournament?
If you have free time today,
come to pick me up later.
I'll be waiting for you
at the entrance of Baiyang Cave.
Sun Xing is still waiting at the gate.
Let him be.
How dare he think
he deserves
an answer from me?
Back then,
I wanted to recruit him,
but he refused it.
And now he came to me himself.
What did he say to you?
When he asked for a visit,
he said that though his right hand is crippled,
his senses of the primordial qi of the heaven and the earth
and the comprehension of swordsmanship
are far better than ordinary practitioners.
By the way,
he also said that
even if his right hand
can't put up excellent sword skills,
he has already gotten into
the True Vitality Realm at this age.
If he can advance to the fifth realm
and use flying swords one day,
the loss of this hand
wouldn't hinder him at anything.
Well said.
The use of flying swords
doesn't require his hands.
Flying swords are only suitable for carrying out distant attacks.
He won't stand a chance in close combat.
That's why the fifth-realm practitioners in Fengming
always carry two long swords on their backs.
So he thinks
that when he reaches the fifth realm,
I'll get him a bodyguard
to protect him closely?
Ding Ning!
This tavern boy
does surprise me.
I've never expected
he would have performed so excellently at Baiyang Cave.
I even talked with him in person.
I also can't imagine
he could be associated with those freaks.
About that Sun Xing,
should I send him away?
We're in need of talents.
So let's see
if he can be of any use.
Let him take care of the horses.
Tell him to clean the stables.
Yes.
Master.
Ding Ning!
Come on. Help him sit up.
Master.
Don't be distracted.
Keep practicing.
Don't waste the Beauty-locking Elixir.
Master.
Master!
Master,
you still came.
You made the breakthrough?
Yes.
That was too risky!
If I didn't do it,
I wouldn't be able to win the tournament at Minshan,
and then I wouldn't be able to make you proud.
Without practice, you can't win the tournament.
But if you speed up your practice,
it will shorten your life span.
You know it
better than I do.
Now,
you took risk to make the breakthrough
regardless of your safety,
so what is it for?
The meaning of life doesn't lie in its span
but in whether it's wonderful.
If I'm doomed to die young at 30,
rather than do nothing and wait to die,
I choose to take my chance.
Help me go back.
Well...
You...
have made the breakthrough?
I knew
something extraordinary would happen today,
but little could I expect
it would be so extraordinary!
I don't have many days left.
It needs to go even faster.
How long has it been
since the Sword Sacrifice Trial?
Of all the gifted young people in Fengming,
from the second realm—Qi-refining Realm,
to the third realm—True Vitality Realm,
it took at least eight months.
Your breakthrough today
is going to set a new record
in the entire Fengming.
Is it necessary to show off what you've done?
It wasn't,
but it is now.
I want to honor my master.
He has even fewer days remaining than I do.
You worry about too many things.
The ultimate result is the goal.
Whether I can reach it or not,
I hope that the process
can be more meaningful.
I used to hope
to have fewer attachments.
But you're getting more and more attachments.
Yes.
First I got you.
And now my master.
I won't be your attachment.
What should I do?
You already are.
Then you must stay alive!
OK!
Master.
Master,
I'm sorry that you haven't had breakfast yet,
while I'm having mine.
Your bowl...
The noodle shop owner is so nice
that he said
I can just return it
after I finish eating.
Master,
let me get you some noodles.
No need.
Enjoy yours.
Master.
Hi.
Ding Ning.
Ding Ning,
these noodles are nice.
Our master doesn't want them,
but I'll get some for you.
No need!
Just enjoy yours.
Do you still remember
that in the last Lushan Alliance Meeting,
we were defeated by Xian,
so Liangshan County of Heng
was ceded to them?
So many years have passed,
and Liangshan County
has always been Heng's shame.
Xian has occupied our Liangshan County for so many years.
To take vengeance,
Heng has been preparing military forces.
If we take back Liangshan County this time,
it'll definitely inspire our people.
Everything has changed over the years.
Heng is no longer what it was before.
In this Lushan Alliance Meeting,
I will achieve something.
Soon,
Heng's soldiers
will bring down all the other kingdoms
and bring them all under control.
Long live His Majesty the King! Long live the great Kingdom of Heng!
Today,
what His Majesty said was so full of ambition.
It was so thrilling
and exciting.
This time in the meeting at Lushan, we'll definite retake the lost territory.
Heng is no longer what it was before.
We won't be humiliated like before.
Marquis Fang, wait a moment please.
Have you heard that the tavern boy
has reached the third realm?
He is the fastest in making breakthroughs to reach higher realms in Fengming.
In the Sword Sacrifice Trial,
he used an elixir
to upgrade himself from the lower grade to the top grade of the Qi-refining Realm.
Due to his yang hyperactivity,
you refused Ding Ning before.
But considering his performance now,
he might have overcome
his difficulty of having a premature aging body.
Do you still hold the same opinion as before?
Yes.
Marquis Fang's thought makes sense.
Before making breakthroughs, Ding Ning used a variety of elixirs.
Without those,
he wouldn't have made the breakthroughs faster
than the other two.
The deposit of those elixirs
might have
an impact on his future practice
involving the senses of the primordial qi.
I don't think so.
How long has it been since the Sword Sacrifice Trial?
It's not yet been three months.
What's more, he even went to Tushan County
with Xue Wangxu.
Due to the long tiring trip,
he hasn't had a nonstop practice in seclusion.
Four months?
This Ding Ning
is really the fastest indeed.
He's clearly a rare genius.
This is great.
If Marquis Fang doesn't want him,
then I will support him.
I want to see
how the young man that even Her Majesty cares about
will perform in the Minshan Swordsmanship Tournament.
You're so prudent, Marquis Lian.
I'm willing to go with you.
An unexpected guest
is deemed rude.
I really have been rude.
But I'm here to help you.
Help me?
I don't know
how you got to my study
without being noticed,
but from your dress,
I really can't see how you can
help me.
In your mansion,
there're indeed a lot of practitioners who are stronger than me.
I can stand before you today
because
in these days,
I've figured out their routines and habits.
In fact, you know
Ding Ning was right about many things.
You always want things to be done perfectly,
but there're not
so many perfect things.
Take your home-coming for example,
why must you wait
for the consents of both your father
and Fragrant Concubine Zhao?
What do you mean?
Have you ever thought that
pleasing either your father or Fragrant Concubine Zhao
to the largest extent
and winning the approval of one of them
is easier than
pleasing them both?
Go on.
The relationship between your father and Fragrant Concubine Zhao
is much better
than the relationships between
the other aristocrats of Xian.
As long as one of them strongly wants you to go back,
the other one
will definitely agree.
So,
you don't need to hesitate
and consider other possibilities.
The only thing you need to do is
try your best to convince one of them.
You've endured humiliation here for so long
just to
stand before me today.
Do you have any plan?
I'm willing to be your envoy
to the capital of Xian to convince Fragrant Concubine Zhao.
You came to me,
but I asked you to keep horses.
Instead of hating me,
you want to help me?
I don't care about favors or grudges.
I just want benefits.
Name it. What do you want?
A promise that when you become the king,
I'll be your chancellor,
a position
second only to you.
Accepted.
If you can help me go home
and take the throne,
it'll just be a piece of cake.
Tell me,
when you'll set out.
The sooner the better,
so I'll set out today.
Master,
are these all the gifts
the marquises gave Ding Ning?
Are these a kind of honor, too?
Yes, master.
What's the matter?
Master,
Marquis Li gave him a gold-threaded robe.
A gold-threaded robe
helps a practitioner of the True Vitality Realm to concentrate his life force.
It's a great gift indeed.
Yeah!
Even if it's a gold-threaded robe,
you don't have to be so excited.
Yes.
You are right.
What now?
Master.
Master, look!
Marquis Lian,
Marquis Lian sent
the whale balm!
After applying it all over the body,
it will promote the renewal of blood and marrow
for achieving True Vitality,
which can dramatically speed up the practice!
Even people of high ranks like Marquis Lian
do things like this.
So, what's the point of
climbing the social ladder?
I didn't expect you to come.
Haven't you been looking for me for a long time?
The other day, you released me.
Then at the fish market,
Bai Shanshui didn't take advantage of your difficulties.
We're even now.
If we're even,
then why did you come here today?
You sent men after us in secret,
so we want to know
what has troubled you.
I want you to kill Xue Wangxu
and the young man with him.
Xue Wangxu and Ding Ning?
Even if you hate them,
you shouldn't make irrational moves.
I don't think it's necessary.
It's necessary of course.
I'm not a single practitioner.
I'm a general leading an army.
To win a battle, we should take the enemy by surprise.
Craftiness is
what we must always uphold.
Right now, everyone thinks
I wouldn't go after Xue Wangxu and that young man.
If they get killed,
everyone would think that
someone is trying to frame me.
And you
happen to be able to help me with it.
You don't need to worry that I would betray you.
The closer I am to you,
the more I am with you,
the more reliable our alliance will be,
and the more you can trust me.
You're right.
But you should understand
all that we want is the Gushan Sword Manual,
and of course we don't do bad deals.
Of course I understand.
Ever since I arranged you to settle down here,
I've never asked you
about the secret of the Gushan Sword Manual
or pried into
what you're looking for in Fengming.
If you won't even do me this small favor,
then what's the point
of these mutual benefits between us?
If Fengming gets more chaotic,
it will be even more beneficial to us.
In the long term,
if I'm in the light
and you're in the dark,
maybe we'll be much
more pleased.
These heads are not cheap,
and especially since we're risking our lives in Fengming,
the price is higher.
To buy people's lives,
no price
is too high.
Your nephew is a nice man.
Just like the others,
you want to recruit him to serve your family?
I just brought some fresh seafood as a gift.
Compared with those coming with treasures,
I think
I'm more like visiting a friend, right?
Your seafood
is not ordinary.
I do think that Ding Ning is a very nice young man.
He often comes to the fish market
to take care of the old lady who runs the ink paste shop,
seeking no reward, which is rare.
Looking at him today,
I can feel he has the calm that can get through the ups and downs.
I also have the desire for talents,
but I can't even take care of myself.
Living with us,
he won't be able to live a stable life.
So, I just came to see him from a distance.
Please don't get me wrong.
Well then,
thanks.
Shouldn't you respect your master?
You've won several rounds.
And you never faked a couple of wrong moves
so that I can win a little bit.
Master,
the book says...
Book...
I'm going to...
Your disciple is a good-natured fellow,
a classic gentleman.
He just has too much of that.
How many times have I said that
books and laws are written by people?
Between rules and me,
think about which one is more important.
Master,
please calm down.
It's my fault.
Let's play again?
That's more like it.
Master.
You guys go on. I'll be right back.
OK!
Miss Shang came to see you
with some rare seafood.
She's already gone.
Visit me?
She never leaves the fish market,
and you two are old friends,
but you two just talked only about me?
It's better for people like us
not to mention the past.
She came today
really not on an appointment with you?
Others may not know it,
but I know it better than anyone else.
Back then, your master
used rapid and extreme measures
to annihilate the Gongsun and the Shang families.
Though it was done by the King of Heng,
he was the original promoter of the reform.
It has seriously impacted
the interests of the eleven marquises,
so the King of Heng exterminated the Bashan Sword Field
as the condition for promoting the reform.
Master was too radical.
He broke a lot of people's hearts.
Your master is detestable,
but in the chaos,
he tried his best to save the Shang family's youngest daughter.
So I think that
if you ask,
she will definitely help you.
Master owed too much to the Shang
and the Gongsun families.
In these years,
the King of Heng has devoted himself to his practice.
I'm afraid he has reached
the top grade of the eighth realm.
Our vengeance
is merely our obsession.
She chose the fish market,
which means she doesn't want to show her face in public.
This is good for her.
His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is truly gifted!
At this age,
he has already made it into the fourth realm.
This is worth celebrating!
Your Royal Highness the Crown Prince
once learned swordsmanship from That Man.
And now you are already an excellent swordsman.
Presumably in the near future,
just like That Man,
Your Royal Highness will top all the other practitioners in Fengming
and surpass His Majesty.
How dare you!
Who sent you here?
What are your intentions?