Chapter 725 Broken spear reformed into a free saber
It had an earthy, mellow and refreshing taste to it, the kind that farmers would enjoy in the evening when the sunset had just set in and their bodies were seeking reprieve and comfort from the day's labors.
Other than the taste, Yang Qing loved the wine for the simplistic feeling it evoked on all who drunk it. Just like the farmers, one would feel like the pressures of all the labors of the day get washed away by the wine. Yang Qing may not know what was going on in Wen Yingjie's mind but over the years he had gotten pretty good at reading the silent emotions. The things the body says without saying anything, and Wen Yingjie's body spoke of a burden, a type of burden Yang Qing was all too familiar with, especially for the past few months. The burden of responsibility and the uncertainty of it on whether you would be able to uphold it.
From the first time the rogue cultivator stepped into his courtroom, he knew he had a story. A rogue cultivator whose background was from a famous clan with a palace realm expert that was held with great repute even with the ruling family, and the rogue cultivator was one of the prized talents of said family, but he up and left one day and became a rogue cultivator, and despite his talents that would make him attractive to most organizations, still chooses to remain a rogue cultivator.
Someone like that had to have a story and his face and body language spoke volumes of it, but Yang Qing wasn't Mao Yunru, he had enough of snooping around people's stories. And if he was being honest, he was slightly terrified of it now, especially from recent events and happenings in his life, they left him a little wary.
"So how does it feel.." Yang Qing asked with a smile after picking up his wine cup which was the excuse Wen Yingjie had been waiting for to pick up his. Even though he was slightly reserved, other than his love for the saber, wines were a close second, and just from what he was picking up, he could tell the jade bamboo wine was a quality brew, the kind that even his grandfather who loved him dearly would never let him take a whiff.
Holding his wine cup with fervent admiration, Wen Yingjie said,
"I thought I was ready for the pain Chief Inquisitor Yi Jie mentioned, but I realized I had severely underestimated how excruciating it would be. It was thanks to the stygian soul bonding spring in the cave that I was able to endure the process and the cultivation he shared with me, made the integration process proceed faster.
I doubt I would have been able to survive without either.."
Wen Yingjie's hand that was holding the wine faintly shivered as the harrowing experience of the past four months flowed through his mind. He had thought with the hardy life he led, what storms hadn't he seen in his time as a general of the Blue Oak Kingdom or as a rogue cultivator, more so the latter.
He felt that no matter how painful the process of splitting his soul would be, he thought he would be able to endure it. The first time he made the attempt, he passed out before completing the process, and it needed several tries before he could even maintain his consciousness.
Then there was also the matter of feeding his saber intent into the embryonic spirit of his saber. The process on a normal day was demanding enough as any slip-up and the fragile spirit would be permanently damaged and he had to do so with the same breath as he was nurturing the spirit with his soul. It was only thanks to the abilities of the three hearts celestial octopus art that helped him split his concentration three ways like he had three clones operating different tasks and the healing powers of the stygian soul bonding spring, which eased the pain of splitting his soul whilst also boosting his concentration.
Seeing the toll it was taking on him, his grandfather advised him to leave the kingdom and go travel the world before he was consumed by the voices that had flooded the kingdom. Though the voices that came from his own mind were the loudest. That period had been the darkest period of his life, and it nearly broke him. His mind and his heart were going, and he could feel those heart demons growing in number and strength the longer he lingered around the kingdom.
So when his grandfather made the suggestion, he took it, leaving with only a spear in hand, the one his grandfather had gifted along with a few partying words.
"One of the keys to living is knowing that which needs to be carried and held onto, and that which doesn't.."
He hoped that the journey would help enlighten him on which, and in some part, Wen Yingjie realized some of the wisdom in it as being a rogue cultivator and the countless dangers it brought, he was forced to abandon a spear and pick a saber to keep his life, and it turned out that was where his true talents lay.
He had been using the spear because he idolized his grandfather who had proven his dao with his spear talents alone, and he hoped to replicate the same feats to honor him. However, after he left, every time he used the spear because of the guilt and shame welling within him, he could never use that spear well, and his skills even seemed to regress, and it wasn't long before he decided to switch because he couldn't handle looking at that spear, or using the spear arts his grandfather taught him not after the mess he left them with.
After he left, tales were still being sung about him, the Blue Oak's broken spear, the prince's bane, the blind sentinel, the spear of regret and lamentations, and the like.
The reputation his grandfather had built as the indomitable golden dragon spear of the kingdom had quickly been tarnished by his tales, and it was unbearable for him as he had grown idolizing and relishing with pride of the heroic tales that surrounded his grandfather's exploits. He felt deep pride for being the golden dragon spear's grandson, even though the man in question loved being a grandfather who liked to take his grandson hunting more than the man spoke of in those tales.
But all that changed. After he left, he sneaked back after a few months to see if the stories were dying down, only to find the flames were still burning strong with his trip being called a banishment, among other things, with the crowds calling for reparations from his family for his failures.
He left immediately after, swearing he would never come back until he was a palace realm cultivator, while also bringing to justice the true culprits behind the whole thing, the Black Jade Syndicate. As a palace realm cultivator, he felt he would have the heart to face his grandfather once more, and it was the only way he could accomplish his second goal, which was the elimination of the Black Jade Syndicate as the head of the syndicate was at the palace realm along with his three deputies.
His naivety fueled by anger and regret blinded him to how difficult it would be to reach the palace realm, and that was when one wasn't plagued by countless heart demons, luckily for him, life as a rogue cultivator had a way of bringing things into perspective and wearing away anything superfluous.
The voices of others were losing their sway on him, everything that was the young scion of the illustrious Wen Clan had been eroded and he became just Wen Yingjie, a rogue cultivator, alone in the world trying to find himself. He no longer tried to imitate his grandfather or held himself to the ambitions of the young Wen Yingjie, he dropped the spear and picked up the saber, and slowly by slowly he cut away the mold that he thought was him and leaving only a skeleton of his former self, and reforged himself, in blood, tears, desperation, all the while trying to grasp at clarity, acceptance, and peace and his place in the new reality.
His grandfather's words rang true, and with time he grew to realize what to carry and hold on to and what to let go. Though he was still figuring it out, he managed to find a bit of what mattered, and what didn't, and for what didn't, glory was on the list. Glory from men was worth nothing in the end. People were capricious in the end, and if you built yourself from it, it was a road to doom. He had been glorified as a genius and later a scourge that had betrayed the heavens. He truly came to understand why his grandfather never cared much for the stories being told about him.
Find yourself, be yourself, and in the end, that's all that matters. For him, it was a few things, his family, his honor, and now his path. He would seek out the Black Jade Syndicate, but not to avenge the prince, or the royal family, or to appease the public to rectify his reputation with them, but to protect his home and family, and if he was being honest, satisfying vengeance too. He no longer wanted to reach the palace realm because he wanted to see the gratifying smile of his grandfather, which he would love, but he was now pursuing it for himself and now the saber that lay in his lap, his new companion and see the wider world that he had been oblivious too all this time. The broken spear had turned into a free saber.