Everyday I Get up to See the Villain Stealing the Show 38

An Yuan’s attitude changed since he lost his memory, and Han Changsheng was extremely dissatisfied with it. Even though the Dog Lord’s personality used to be annoying, just asking for a beating. To be honest, he didn’t hate it so much; it made him easy to fool. In just a few days of pretending, he regarded him as a good brother. When he jumped off a cliff, the Dog Lord had jumped right after him. Such deep feelings of devotion! 

Now, how did An Yuan’s personality change into something so much worse? The Dog Lord wouldn’t let him help heal the wound. 

What else was it? “Your life and death are in my hands”. How could he talk to a teacher that way?! Had all his senses of propriety, justice, integrity, and honor been fed to the dogs?

An Yuan took a wild fruit for breakfast. Seeing Han Changsheng still sitting in his spot, he was stupefied. Without expression, he said, “My good Shifu, teach me sword skills from today on.”

Han Changsheng couldn’t breathe. “Do you still want to learn?”

An Yuan insisted, “Naturally. I want to be strong.”

Han Changsheng rolled his eyes. “Why do you want to get stronger? Do you remember anything?”

An Yuan narrowed his eyes, and Han Changsheng shuddered. “I want to be stronger so I can control everything in my hands and not be bullied again.”

“Who bullied you. . .?” Han Changsheng asked. He thought of coaxing the Dog Lord to smile, but then the shocking image of the Dog Lord’s face as he jumped off the cliff crossed his mind. His lips curled upwards. “Don’t you remember?”

An Yuan squinted, but didn’t answer.

After breakfast, Han Changsheng meditated for a while. The mountain air was still very fresh, suitable for practicing. Thanks to An Yuan helping him recuperate the former night; he felt much better. 

However, while his body was at peace, his heart was not. He was already in a bad mood from the threats from the underworld’s immortals. Now this fallen immortal Dog Lord dared to threaten him. He was the leader of the Demonic Cult. Could he go on like this?!

Thinking long and hard, Han Changsheng decided not to encourage the Dog Lord’s spirit. He had a few tricks up his sleeve. Didn’t he have a few tactics in hand?

After a while, An Yuan came over and said, “Let’s start practicing.”

Opening his eyes, Han Changsheng pointed to a pile of dirty clothes beside him, which had been soaked by his sweat the former night. Fortunately, before he went to the mountain, he remembered to buy several more sets of clothes for both of them to change and wash. 

An Yuan didn’t even look at them. “No washing.”

“If you don’t wash,” Han Changsheng insisted, a bitterness in his voice, “You won’t be taught to fight with a sword.”

An Yuan’s face was indifferent. “Then you conquer your internal strength with just yourself.”

Han Changsheng sneered. “If I die, do you think you’ll have a good life? I’ve already poisoned you. If you don’t obey, you’ll suffer each night.” Was that not a good threat?

An Yuan’s eyebrows moved slightly, and he sneered. “I need not even poison you. I can do a little something that will leave you wishing for death while helping you unblock your meridians.”

Furious, Han Changsheng took out a bottle of Du Yuefei’s special invigorating pills from his arms. “This is a special Xieling pill made by an expert. If you eat it, you will shit diarrhea nonstop for seven days and seven nights.”

“I sealed one of your meridians,” An Yuan said, still not in a hurry. “So you cannot shit for seven days and seven nights.”

Han Changsheng took out another bottle of blood nourishing pills. “This is a Yang impotence pill. Take this medicine, and you will become a living eunuch from now on!”

“I can make you stink to heaven. Everyone will notice it, regardless of if they are people, ghosts, pigs, or dogs.”

Han Changsheng shivered. An Yuan was so powerful? But, other than the Dog Lord, there are no other people in this valley, not even a single pig. If he did, wouldn’t he. . . Pei, pei! What am I thinking?

“Madness, you’re a fool that will call any man father and any woman mother!”

“I will use true Qi to collide your Lingquan acupoint1, so you won’t know whether you are a man or a crazy dog! It will drive you mad!”

“This is a fragrant and foul scent reversal pill. I’ll make you stink like nobody’s business!”

“I’ll turn your five senses upside down!”

“I, I, I. . .” Han Changsheng felt around for another bottle of Jinchuang medicine, “This is. . . This is. . . Disfigurement and scattered boils! It turns people hideous after use!”

An Yuan’s mouth drew downwards. “You just applied that on me yesterday.”

Triumphantly, Han Changsheng said, “That’s right! I’ve drugged you! Go do the laundry and cook. Maybe then I would then consider giving you the antidote.”

An Yuan sniffed. “Childish.”

 “Fuck!” Han Changsheng said angrily. “You’re the one who’s childish! Ludicrous! There is no cure!”

An Yuan was too lazy to pester Han Changsheng anymore and grabbed the pile of dirty clothes. Seeing that Han Changsheng left his dirty underwear in it, he tossed them aside and said, “Wash these yourself.”

Han Changsheng rolled his eyes. “I don’t know how.”

Disdain written across his face, An Yuan said, “You haven’t washed your underwear in twenty years?”

Han Changsheng: “. . .”

Walking to the stream with the clothes in his arms, An Yuan called, “If you’re not afraid of me painting something in it. . .”

Han Changsheng jumped up. Furiously taking his underwear, he went to the stream, himself.

“Oh, by the way,” An Yuan sneered, “Your poisons. I saw you take one of each last night.”

Han Changsheng: “. . .”

It wasn’t a good day!

That morning, they squatted by the river to wash clothes together. 

An Yuan acted quickly, cleaning several articles of clothing in a short time. In the same period, Han Changsheng washed only his underwear, until–

His underwear ripped in half in his hands. 

Throwing aside the rags, he shouted, “Sword practice!”

An Yuan’s injury wasn’t healed, so he didn’t practice with high intensity. Han Changsheng asked him to practice stabbing motions toward the bamboo. Drawing a point on a pole, he ordered him to stab only the point every time. If it wasn’t just right, he could damage it.  

Elder Lan Fang taught Han Changsheng the essence of sword technique. It wasn’t so mysterious. Those with fancy moves and skills weren’t experts. The most exquisite moves were only composed of the simplest actions. The secret of winning lie buried within three words that everyone recognized: speed, ruthlessness, and accuracy. 

But, today’s children were often blind. They were too eager. 

An Yuan didn’t understand the plan Han Changsheng made for him, so he only concentrated on practicing. He’d seen Han Changsheng’s sword technique. Simple and sharp, but far from easy. Han Changsheng himself barely learned it in five days while trapped in the underground palace of the Peach Blossom Valley. In the past nineteen years, he was forced to practice by the old master and the hall leaders. If they weren’t as forceful as they were, he wouldn’t always drop everything to escape outside. All Elder Lanfang did was get him to understand.  

In the evening, An Yuan helped Han Changsheng guide his Qi to neutralize his internal power. 

He didn’t know if An Yuan intended to retaliate. 

Han Changsheng’s whole body ached like when he practiced kung fu. Soon, he was soaked with cold sweat. An Yuan worked very hard to keep his internal force in balance. Palms to palms, An Yuan guided his Qi through Han Changsheng’s body. Even the Dog Lord was sweating profusely. 

Han Changsheng could do it alone, without An Yuan’s help. However, An Yuan refused to teach him the meditative chant. He had to fake his strength. 

Unable to stand the pain, Han Changsheng reluctantly drew up a smile. “Good apprentice, you are looking too tired, and it pains me. You can tell me the meditative chant. Let your teacher do the hard work, himself.”

“Shut up, if you don’t want to go to Qi deviation,” An Yuan said, his voice cold.

Han Changsheng scolded the Dog Lord 108 times in his heart. Enduring his anger, he let himself be tormented. 

Finally, An Yuan stopped. Sliding down to the ground, he immediately fell asleep. Han Changsheng curled up beside him, not saying another word. 

The next day, after An Yuan was done with the laundry, he returned to his practice. 

He was about to start stabbing the bamboo again when Han Changsheng stopped him. “Wait a minute. Let’s change the way you’re practicing today.”

An Yuan stopped, arching an eyebrow. 

“Train your muscles today,” Han Changsheng said. Stepping forward, he pinched An Yuan’s arms and legs. His muscles were well proportioned. They weren’t too much, nor too little. His distribution of strength and speed muscles was just right for a swordsman. Because a swordsman didn’t need brute force required for weapons such as a broad ax or a meteor hammer, they needed to focus on dexterity. Therefore, swordsman masters looked thin in broad clothes, hidden under their normal clothes. Their strength wasn’t to be underestimated, though. 

Pleased with what he found, Han Changsheng grinned, then pretended to be displeased. “Your muscles are poor. We need to carry out targeted training today to strengthen them.”

Returning his sword to its scabbard, An Yuan quietly waited for Han Changsheng to arrange his plan. 

“Today, we need to strengthen your butt muscles,” Han Changsheng pointed out. “Come, like this!” 

Taking An Yuan to a bamboo stalk, he bent it towards the ground, then released. The bamboo bounced back, hitting An Yuan’s ass. In an instant, An Yuan’s murderous aura permeated the area. A passing butterfly fell to the ground. 

Fearlessly greeting eyes that could freeze magma, Han Changsheng said, “Like this, practicing a hundred times today would be enough. It is important to know that gluteal muscles are the key part of connecting your waist and lower limb strength. Any swordsman must have strong gluteal muscles. . . Well, that’s it. Practice on your own.”

Their eyes met, and all the insects and animals started to escape in a hurry. 

Han Changsheng sneered in his heart. Ha, ha, ha! Do you think Laozi is easy to bully? Let’s see who gets to trifle with whom!

That night, An Yuan helped Han Changsheng dredge his true Qi. The third morning, Han Changsheng’s buttocks were swollen and painful. His lower back felt as if it will snap at any moment, each step made him grimace in pain. 

Since the Black and White Impermanence deities were busy, they opened the illusion and looked at the mortal world. They saw Han Changsheng and An Yuan living in seclusion, deep in the mountains. Each day, they fought like bitches2. 

It worried the Black Impermanence. “You said this mortal was unreliable. Can he help An Yuan transition back to his place?”

The White Impermanence sighed. “Now there is no other way. We can’t interfere with mortals with our immortal power. We can only give them a bit of advice to see how much he can achieve. Is it not Lord’s fate? It’s all their creation.”

The Black Impermanence connected the mirage to the star pool. Seeing An Yuan’s star of disaster still tirelessly bright, he sighed. 

Du Yuefei’s special wound medicine was very effective. After a few days, An Yuan’s injury was all better. Han Changsheng had already developed more targeted training for him. 

An Yuan’s basic skills weren’t bad. He had a good nature for martial arts practice. His efforts in one day often bested those who spent three or five days on the same exercises. However, the Yuehua Sect’s intensity training was nothing compared to what Han Changsheng went through as a child, so he was still worse off than Han Changsheng. 

Besides his basic sword moves, Han Changsheng began teaching him technique comprehension. 

When Han Changsheng was in the same place, Elder Lan Fang threw him into the underground palace of vines. Eager to leave, he unconsciously realized his true lesson. But, he couldn’t provide those conditions for An Yuan. He didn’t have the elder’s wealth of knowledge, and An Yuan was his first apprentice. He was clumsy and could only voice his lessons. 

“Close your eyes, treat all the bamboo around you as enemies. Find their weakness, and attack them.”

“But, the bamboo are all dead things.” An Yuan said.

“Don’t be so brainless!” Han Changsheng replied. “You can also regard the enemy as a dead thing. As long as you are fast enough or can expect their actions soon enough to find their weakness, aren’t they as good as dead? I taught you to practice with bamboo, flowers, trees, and water so you could understand the extent of your sword. Think of it as a part of your body, like your hand, and close your eyes to strengthen the feeling. Achieve the integration of man and weapon.”

“Understand that what matters is not the enemy, but your sword.” Finishing his lecture, Han Changsheng picked his nose and flicked it away. A lot of things could be understood, but not spoken. Han Changsheng couldn’t teach people at all. He wanted to send the dog lord back to Elder Lan Fang for his advice. Luckily, they still had a while before the Wulin conference. He could grind it.

Unexpectedly, the Dog Lord listened. He closed his eyes. 

A moment later, An Yuan woke from his epiphany and drew his sword from its scabbard. He danced in the bamboo forest. 

Han Changsheng watched his every movement, stunned. Compared to the time he’d spent in the Yuehua Sect, he was advanced. The guy’s talent. . . was unlimited. 

Watching An Yuan’s figure as he moved through his dance, Han Changsheng couldn’t hold in his itch to practice and joined him. 

There was no end to martial arts. No matter how good you think you are, there is always someone out there that is better. Thus, no matter how powerful they already were, they strove to be stronger. If none could surpass them, then they should attempt to surpass themselves. 

That evening, An Yuan again helped Han Changsheng dredge his Qi. After that, when the man fell asleep, An Yuan moved to his side. Looking down at him with his eyebrows creased in the moonlight, he whispered to himself. 

“Who are you, really?”