Chapter Thirty-Eight: That Year’s Heavy Snow, the Hidden Side of Lady Hua

Smoke curled gently, golden years melting into incense burning softly, like each tick of the clock winding backward, as if every grain of sand reversed in the hourglass.
A single green stone dropped into the tranquil lake, sending ripples through the waters of time.
The scene stirred like the trembling surface, mirroring Anle’s own unsettled heart.
As the tremors spread, everything before him began to slowly come into focus.
...
Dusk clouds gathered, and pure white snow, like feathers, fell from the heights, blanketing the world.
A bountiful year heralded by auspicious snow.
On the broad snowy plain, a young girl danced with her sword, clad in brocade, undaunted by the falling snow above. Her blood surged within, fierce as dragon or tiger, dispelling the cold, radiating warmth.
That girl was none other than Lady Hua—more precisely, Lady Hua in her youth.
The maiden, Hua Jie Bing, flushed with the rush of blood, her beautiful face tinged with rosy vigor, her eyes filled with worry. She gripped a slender sword, its blade long and elegant, like a thread of spring rain descending to earth.
The sword was named Spring Rain, one of Hua Jie Bing's treasured blades.
"Failed again. Is this ‘Shattering Sword’ really so difficult?"
Still a girl, Hua Jie Bing was innocent and lively, pouting her red lips. In the next moment, she hurled her sword with sudden force; Spring Rain swept through the air, her body surging with heat like a tidal wave. She dashed forward.
Snow was flung up as she leaped, Spring Rain arcing and then falling, and as it descended, Hua Jie Bing struck with a clenched fist at the sword's hilt, unleashing tremendous power.
Boom!
A ripple of invisible force exploded outward; Spring Rain whistled forward, veering off course and striking the snowy ground, gouging a white furrow.
Hua Jie Bing landed, furrowing her brows.
Another failure left the novice swordswoman somewhat discouraged.
She sat in the snow, pouting as if sulking, and only after a while did she lift her head. Her exquisite face suddenly took on a mischievous glint as she glanced around, ensuring no one was nearby.
The girl scrambled up, brushed herself off, and scampered to retrieve her sword, Spring Rain.
She took a deep breath, and with her mind's focus, Spring Rain shot out once more. The girl darted, light as a rabbit, leaping after it.
As she neared Spring Rain, she clenched her fist, her blood like a roaring furnace. Her rosy lips rounded, and she cried aloud,
"Ha! Watch me shatter the sword!"
Her spirited shout shattered the snow clinging to her body.
In a flash, her fist struck the sword's hilt—a muffled thunderclap resounded, like lightning behind the clouds, rising in a deafening boom!
Spring Rain sword surged forth, wild as a dragon bursting from the depths. Amid the swirling snow, it tore a milky-white streak, as if slicing through the air, howling and rumbling, as if heaven and earth were split asunder!
Boom!
On the snowy plain, a crater five meters wide suddenly burst forth.
Within the pit, all the snow had melted to water, and the slender Spring Rain stood embedded a little over an inch into the earth. The exposed blade trembled, still radiating heat.
In the distance, the girl cheered and danced, her laughter radiant as the spring sun.
"Ha! Watch me shatter the sword!"

She skipped across the snow, hopping and jumping, running to fetch her sword while miming punches.
Innocent and lively, like a sprite of the snowy land.
...
At this point, the scene blurred and faded, until it disappeared entirely.
Anle withdrew from the vision of years, unable to calm himself for a long time, his lips twitching, his expression strange.
The main reason was that this time’s vision let him see a surprisingly adorable side of Lady Hua—but that was normal.
Just as before, when he saw the aloof Fairy Yun Rou, clenching her fists and shouting "Charge! Charge! Charge!" in childish bravado.
To glimpse into the years was always to see those hidden faces.
Anle’s lips curled up, feeling inexplicably amused.
"Ha! Watch me shatter the sword!"
He clenched his fist and tried swinging it forward, calling out the words Lady Hua had once shouted.
A strange delight bubbled within him.
If he were to say these words before Lady Hua herself, who knows what expression she would show—would she slap him dead on the spot?
The more Anle imagined it, the more he laughed.
At that moment, a luminous screen appeared before his eyes.
[Acquired Dao Fruit of Years: Shattering Sword Force (0/10 strands)]
[Note: Shattering Sword Force (Dao Fruit): Unique power blending blood and mind, can be imbued into sword or arm, increasing the potency of sword techniques.]
His vision brightened; watching Lady Hua perform the Shattering Sword had condensed the Dao Fruit [Shattering Sword Force]. The annotation revealed it was a method of exerting force, suited for offense.
What did Anle lack most now?
The "Sword Cascade Diagram" was a mind-cultivation method, a visualization practice, not an offensive sword technique; and although the "Five Beasts Body Tempering Art" contained attack methods, it was still fundamentally a body-forging technique.
He had no proper offensive means.
The arrival of Shattering Sword Force now filled that gap somewhat. From Lady Hua’s vision, it was clear this was a sword technique.
"I wonder, when performing Shattering Sword Force, if shouting ‘Ha! Watch me shatter the sword!’ would actually boost its power..."
Anle’s lips curled, pondering.
The sun lowered slowly, sinking behind the western hills, casting a mischievous afterglow that illuminated the charm of spring, painting the world in vibrant hues.
Anle opened his eyes; the old locust tree rustled in the spring breeze, bringing a unique sense of ease.
After waiting a while, with the Elder of the Temple yet to arrive, Anle rose and, beneath the locust tree, began practicing Shattering Sword Force.
Though he had condensed the Dao Fruit and grasped its basics, mastery would require his own attempts and insights.
He unfastened the bamboo sword Qingshan from his waist, recalling in his mind Lady Hua’s technique from the vision—at that time, her cultivation had not surpassed the fifth realm, so Anle could glean something.
After a moment’s preparation and mental rehearsal of the sword force,
Anle exhaled, tossed the bamboo sword upward, guided by Shattering Sword Force, his breath and mind infused, controlling Qingshan briefly in midair. His blood surged to its peak, rushing forth, and in the next instant, he struck the hilt with a clenched fist.

As for that phrase "Ha! Watch me shatter the sword," the youth felt a bit embarrassed and did not utter it aloud in the end.
Boom!
A ripple of invisible force exploded between his fist and the Qingshan hilt, stirring the locust leaves scattered across the courtyard.
The sword shot forth with a whistling speed, thunderous, slamming into the old locust tree.
The bamboo sword Qingshan lodged itself deep within the trunk. Where blade met wood, heat and tangled sword force emanated; the old locust tree shuddered, dropping leaves in a flurry.
Anle stood still, recalling the method of exertion—mind and blood fused, though awkward, yet possessing a unique force.
Shattering Sword Force... a dominantly aggressive technique.
Anle mused: if imbued into his arm, performed with bird or tiger form, the explosive power would be formidable.
If used against Hu Jingang, the man's demise would be swifter and more certain.
The awkwardness in channeling Shattering Sword Force bothered Anle, so he focused his mind and infused the two strands of gray years' energy drawn from Lady Hua into the Dao Fruit.
At once, a gray incense stick ignited, and the vision unfurled.
Within, Lady Hua practiced Shattering Sword Force, scenes of her small successes appearing, always accompanied by that infectious shout, "Ha! Watch me shatter the sword!"
A smile played on Anle’s lips; in the next moment, he opened his eyes wide, pulled the bamboo sword from the old locust tree, and prepared to try again.
At the courtyard entrance, sunlight poured in, painting everything gold.
The Elder stood bathed in crimson light, holding a bamboo staff and a scroll of artwork, quietly observing Anle’s practice with interest, not interrupting him.
Anle likely hadn’t noticed the Elder; even if he had, his mind was too absorbed to be distracted.
Guided by his breath and mind, the bamboo sword Qingshan rose into the air. His blood surged like a river; Anle lunged forward in tiger form, Shattering Sword Force imbued in fist and blade, he struck, colliding with the hilt.
Boiling blood and mind clung to Qingshan, and the sword exploded forth like a cannonball, swift as lightning behind clouds, piercing the locust tree’s trunk.
Though the bamboo sword lacked an edge, it left the old tree trembling as if near death.
The bark where it struck split open, revealing a patch of smooth wood, forced apart by the powerful impact.
Qingshan remains, witnessing the hues of sunset time and again.
The Elder stood at the threshold, long brows lowered, his wrinkled face gazing at the battered bamboo sword embedded in the tree, its blade gently quivering.
Faintly, the Elder seemed to hear the bamboo sword Qingshan singing, clear and joyful.
His mind recalled, once again, the youth’s words when first he grasped the sword: "When I see Qingshan’s beauty, Qingshan must see me the same."
The Elder laughed softly, regret like a mountain of white snow fading with the sunrise, his smile vanishing.
The youth and Qingshan, a meeting too late.
The bamboo sword that accompanied him for three centuries—perhaps it has found its new master.
How wonderful.