When Le Chaotian passed by the bushes outside a certain square with his harp in his arms, he coughed twice.
"Junior brother, did you catch a cold?" Nan Dao looked at him and asked.
Le Chaotian smiled and said, "It's nothing, I just feel a little uncomfortable in my throat."
Nan Dao didn’t ask again.
After walking through the bushes, two sneaky figures emerged from behind the bushes.
"Look at me, it's impossible for Junior Brother Le to be poached by other sword sects in Lingnan."
This is Wu Dalong's voice.
"I just thought what if?"
Lu Xiaoxiao's sense of urgency is very good.
Nan Dao was sweating not far away and looked at Le Chaotian aside. This very gentle young man just smiled.
The two of them ignored it and walked further through the path.
After walking for a long time, Nan Dao saw the small pool at the end of the trail - about six feet, very clear.
There is an open space around, and there are many gray garden lamps that were moved from unknown places - maybe they were picked up, shabby and old, and in different shapes, scattered around the open space.
There was an old man wearing a gray robe like another garden lamp, with his white hair disheveled, squatting by the pool. The faint courtyard lamp shone on his face, which looked very scary.
The scariest thing was that he was mumbling something.
"Sword, sword, where have you been?"
Nan Dao fell silent when he saw this scene.
No wonder even his disciples call him an old madman.
"Master." Le Chaotian was polite now. "Senior Brother Nan is back."
The old man jumped up and stood by the pool. He chuckled and looked at Nan Dao as if he were a treasure.
"Okay, okay, those swords didn't come back, it'll be good if this sword comes back."
Nan Dao looked at this scene and was silent for a long time, then said, "Can I say I'm here to say goodbye?"
At this time, the old man waved his hand and said with great momentum: "No!"
Le Chaotian said with a smile: "Master, don't get excited, senior brother must be joking."
The old man glared at Le Chaotian and said, "What senior brother? That's your senior uncle!"
"?" Nan Dao looked confused.
The old man walked up eagerly, held Nan Dao's hand that was not holding an umbrella tightly, and said sincerely: "Senior Brother Nan, the hope of the Sword Sect rests with you alone."
Nan Dao wanted to turn around and leave, but then he remembered that he was rescued by Lu Xiaoxiao. Although the senior sister who beat up Senior Brother Wu at every turn didn't say anything, Nan Dao could still see him from the moment he fell to the top of the city. You can guess a lot from those pictures.
More importantly, Lu Xiaoxiao's realm has fallen.
So Nan Dao was silent for a long time and then said: "Okay."
I don’t deny the old man’s words, senior brother.
Anyway, this old boy seems to be talking crazy, so let him be.
"I'll take senior brother back first." Le Chaotian ignored the messy things the old man said, held the harp in one hand and held Nan Dao in the other, and walked out.
The two left here in a hurry.
The old man did not squat by the pool anymore, but stared at the Parrot Island behind Nan Dao in confusion.
Hey, why does this sword look so damn familiar?
...
Nan Dao followed Le Chaotian and walked on that quiet path again.
"The old man's surname is He. This is what Senior Brother Wu told me before. Of course I don't know what his name is, but it shouldn't be He Biping."
Le Chaotian walked leisurely with his harp in his arms, talking to Nan Dao about these things casually.
"Why isn't it called He Biping?" Nan Dao asked, holding an umbrella and looking at the trees beside the road that already had many withered yellow leaves.
Le Chaotian said with a smile: "Because an old man like this who squats by the pool all day long and only thinks about swordsmanship probably won't have any troubles."
It's hard to be calm, so why bother.
Nan Dao thought for a while and said: "Those swords will never come back. Isn't it difficult to calm down?"
Le Chaotian plucked the strings casually and said, "In fact, maybe it sounds more like a pursuit? I have never had anything to hope for, so naturally there will be nothing difficult to settle."
Nan Dao looked at Le Chaotian and said, "Does Junior Brother have one?"
Le Chaotian smiled and shook his head and said, "Of course not."
"I thought you love music so much, but you are always jealous of others. It is inevitable that there will be some."
Le Chaotian stopped, looked at the night autumn wind on the mountain beside the road, and laughed softly: "It is normal and correct for me to be reticent and not understood. I never thought about asking them to understand me from the beginning."
Nan Dao held an umbrella and looked at Le Chaotian quietly, but said with some admiration: "Junior brother is really perceptive."
Le Chaotian smiled and continued walking forward.
"Senior brother, you should have learned swordsmanship?" Le Chaotian said as he walked.
Nan Dao looked back at the two swords behind him, and then realized that he still forgot to pull out the sword from the scabbard.
After thinking about it, forget it, they are all my fellow apprentices anyway, so just be stupid if they look stupid.
Nan Dao turned around, looked at the ugly sword behind Le Chaotian, thought for a moment and said, "I have learned some miscellaneous things. Have you started learning swords yet?"
Le Chaotian smiled and said: "Not yet, the old man keeps talking about swords, swords, swords, and Senior Brother Wu and the others guard you every day. They only gave me a temporary broken sword, which I danced twice in my free time. "
Nan Dao was silent for a while and said: "Perhaps I can teach you? But in fact, I am only average at swordsmanship. I learned it vaguely. Someone taught me swordsmanship several times, but I didn't learn anything thoroughly."
Le Chaotian was very happy. He looked back at Nan Dao and said with a smile, "Okay, some learning is better than none."
Nan Dao was a little curious and happy with such interest, and asked doubtfully: "Junior brother, why do you want to learn swordsmanship so much?"
Le Chaotian said with a smile: "After learning the sword, carrying the sword while walking around the world and playing music can always make some dissatisfied people calm down."
"It turns out that junior brother still cares."
"Of course, yes, I don't expect it, but it's still very annoying when they argue."
Nan Dao laughed.
The two walked out of the path leading to the Sword Throwing Pond and walked along another bluestone path for a while, stopping at the foot of a certain small building.
"Senior brother can live here, I will be next door, and senior brother Wu Dalong will be on the other side, because he has a lot of things to do, such as making swords, watering vegetables, etc."
Le Chaotian said while pointing to Nan Dao.
Nan Dao looked at the extremely quiet small building and said, "I thought there would be more people in the Sword Sect."
Le Chaotian smiled and said: "I heard that there were quite a few in the past, otherwise there wouldn't be these small buildings. But ever since a certain generation of sect masters suddenly had a whim and lost their swords in that pool, there were fewer and fewer disciples. The entire Not many people in Lingnan want to come here - this is what Senior Brother Wu said."
"All right."
Nan Dao walked downstairs holding an umbrella.
Le Chaotian stood behind and said, "Senior brother, have you passed the Luofeng Gorge before?"
"Yes." Nan Dao looked back at Le Chaotian and said, "What's wrong?"
Le Chaotian smiled and said: "I think it's pretty good there. I plan to build a house there. Senior brother, do you want to come with me?"
Nan Dao's eyes lit up.
This is indeed possible, otherwise Lu Xiaoxiao and Wu Dalong from the province would be fighting over each other every day.
"good."
Le Chaotian smiled and walked towards another small building.
Nan Dao entered the small building and looked around for a while. It was very simple.
Below is the sleeping room, and upstairs is an attic open to all sides, probably a place for meditation and practice.
Lying down on the bed, the whole mountain was silent. This made Nan Dao, who had been in Nanyi City for a long time, still a little uncomfortable, so he got up again, went to the attic, and entered the state of practice while enjoying the mountain breeze on the edge.
...
"Brother!"
Nan Dao heard Le Chaotian's voice early in the morning on the second day. He opened his eyes and looked downstairs. Today, Le Chaotian was no longer holding the bulky big harp, but only had an old harp hanging around his waist. It's the same as a reed, but there are some strange things with tubes of different lengths inserted at the bottom.
What kind of musical instrument is this?
Nan Dao looked aside again. Lu Xiaoxiao was there, but Wu Dalong was not there. He probably went to water vegetables in the fields beside the mountain road in the early morning, as Le Chaotian said.
"It's time to go to Xiaobai Sword Sect today!" Lu Xiaoxiao stressed solemnly, holding his sword on his back.
Nan Dao looked at the senior sister who had been chasing him in Nanyi City for a long time, smiled and said, "Okay."
Then he walked downstairs holding an umbrella. Looking at the two people in front of him, Nan Dao asked casually: "Where is Senior Brother Wu?"
"Water the cabbage."
Sure enough, it was exactly as Nan Dao guessed.
The grass beside the road has not died yet, but it does not have the green and lush atmosphere of spring. The trees on both sides are similar. It is still very early, so many branches and leaves beside the road have some autumn dew on them.
The three of them continued walking towards the other side along the same path they came from yesterday afternoon.
On the way, we passed a not-so-big waterfall. Below it was a clear pool. After carrying the falling water, many fallen leaves floated down among the many gravel beaches.
The three of them walked over the washed-out stones under the waterfall without getting their clothes wet.
Nan Dao looked at the waterfall on the cliff, but he didn't know where the water came from.
On the side, Le Chaotian seemed to understand Nan Dao's doubts and said: "This is Xijian Waterfall. It comes from a spring on the top of the mountain. After gathering many mountain streams, it became bigger. After arriving here, it became This waterfall is what Senior Sister Lu said."
The words in Le Chaotian's mouth generally come from two sources.
What Senior Brother Wu said and Senior Sister Lu said.
Of course, the name of Xijian Waterfall is still good and very easy to understand.
I just don’t know if any useful swords have been found.
Lu Xiaoxiao chuckled softly and said: "Actually, its name should be Xiaobai Waterfall. It was given by the founder of Xiaobai Sword Sect when he passed here many years ago. Even the name of Xiaobai Sword Sect came from here."
Nan Dao asked curiously: "Why is it called Xiaobai?"
Lu Xiaoxiao thought for a while, picked up the gourd instrument from Le Chaotian's waist, and put it in front of his eyes. He looked like he was drinking wine, and said in a dignified manner with his sword on his back: "The grand scene here should be like floating on Xiaobai." .”
Le Chaotian said with a smile: "Senior Sister, just ask, what are you going to do with my Hulusi?"
Lu Xiaoxiao laughed and said, "Aren't you trying to set an example for your junior brother?"
Since he successfully brought Nandao back to Lingnan, Lu Xiaoxiao has become happy. Even if his level has fallen, he is at the bottom of Lingnan, and he has no sad emotions. He laughs and laughs all the time.
Maybe really happy.
Nan Dao looked at Lu Xiaoxiao and said with the same smile: "So that's it, then why not call it Dabai Sword Sect?"
Lu Xiaodao: "Maybe the scenery here is not dramatic enough."
The three of them walked through with a smile.
"Then why was it called Xijian Waterfall later? Did you practice swordsmanship under this waterfall?"
Nan Dao remembered that the stories Chen He read had such a plot.
"That's not true. It was that guy Wu Dalong. After knocking the sword, he ran here to quench the sword and wash it, and then threw it into the sword throwing pool for the old man."
"..."
Nan Dao didn't know what to say for a moment.
"But you can also practice swordsmanship under the waterfall, if junior brother has such a preference." Lu Xiaoxiao said seriously. "Perhaps running water can really temper the sword's will?"
When Le Chaotian heard this, his expression became strange, and he looked at Nandao and...the umbrella.
"Senior brother, are you standing under the waterfall holding an umbrella and practicing your sword?"
Le Chaotian said with a soft smile.
Lu Xiaoxiao laughed twice.
Really didn't expect this.
Nan Dao looked at Lu Xiao and said, "Sister, have you tried it?"
Lu Xiaoxiao walked forward with his sword on his back and said, "I tried it, but I caught a cold that night. In those days, I coughed and made pig noises."
Nan Dao was silent.
Although it is true that the body of a sword cultivator is not as good as that of a Taoist cultivator, after all, they are good at maintaining health and practicing Taoism. But it's not that bad.
Nandao has already passed this waterfall, but when he heard this, he couldn't help but look up, but he didn't see anything, just a waterfall of green mountains and flowing clouds.
Lu Xiaoxiao had already moved forward with Le Chaotian, and Nan Dao took a quick look before following him.
In fact, this is not all the doubt caused by Lu Xiaoxiao's words.
When he saw Fang Toujian Pond last night, Nan Dao felt that there was a familiar feeling in the water in the green mountains, but he couldn't remember it for the moment.
If you can't remember something, just ignore it for now.
Nan Dao held an umbrella and carried a sword, and followed the two of them.
So after passing through a red leaf forest, another group of red buildings appeared in front of us.
Compared with the deserted Tianya Sword Sect over there, the Xiaobai Sword Sect here is much prettier.
First there were many sweet-scented osmanthus trees in full bloom with white flowers, many low plants with red leaves under the trees, and some scattered white gravel paths. Red and white contrast with each other, but the colors are distinct and have a unique artistic conception.
The three of them crossed the path, but several little girls and boys stopped in front of a courtyard with swords on their backs. They looked at the three people walking towards them and saluted respectfully.
"I've met Master, Uncle Nan, and Uncle Musician."
Nan Dao looked at Lu Xiaoxiao with a confused look on his face. How come he was a senior brother yesterday and now he has become a senior uncle today?
Lu Xiaoxiao smiled and said, "I forgot to tell you, I am the current head of the Xiaobai Sword Sect."
Although this female swordsman who was once sad and munching steamed buns at the top of Nanyi City is smiling now, there is obviously a lot of loneliness in her smile at this moment.
Nan Dao was silent for a while, looked at Lu Xiaoxiao and asked, "Where is your master?"
Just after he finished asking, Le Chaotian on the side pulled his clothes.
"She." Lu Xiaoxiao said with a smile, "I'm so pissed off."
Nan Dao then understood why Le Chaotian suddenly pulled his clothes.
She also roughly understood why Wu Dalong gave up but she still persisted.
Maybe I really can’t see hope in myself.
Nan Dao said softly: "Sorry."
"It doesn't matter." Lu Xiaoxiao really thought so. He walked forward and touched the heads of the young boys. Those young boys were probably only three or four years younger than Nan Dao. Look. They seem a little reserved.
There is also a young boy in Nanyi City.
But teenagers are different from teenagers.
If nothing happens to that little boy, he will become the leader of the giant Sword Sect in the world.
But these young boys were still silent in the mountains, looking at Nan Dao, their uncle who was not a few years older than them.
"Okay, everyone, let's go practice swordplay. Lu Xiaoyi, you go cook first. If there's no food, go steal some cabbage from your Uncle Wu."
Hearing Lu Xiaoxiao's words, Nan Dao felt a little funny, but he couldn't laugh. So he just held an umbrella and watched the little boys and girls scattering away with swords on their backs.
The courtyard became quiet. Lu Xiaoxiao walked forward with his sword on his back, and then stopped under an osmanthus tree in the courtyard. He looked back at Nan Dao and said sincerely: "I am serious, junior brother."
It’s not just Tianya Sword Sect or Xiaobai Sword Sect.
The future of Lingnan lies with Nandao.
Nan Dao sighed, stood in the yard with his sword on his back, and said softly: "Senior sister, in an era when Dao Dao was only two thousand years old, you always said such things, and I was really stressed."
Lu Xiaoxiao laughed, but he no longer had those sad emotions, so he felt confident again.
"The Great Dao has been in the world for seventy or eighty generations for more than two thousand years. This is not a short period of time. Naturally, everything that should be there is already there. What is not there yet is your business, junior brother."
Lu Xiao looks as if she is very old, but she is only thirty years old. Even Chen Huaifeng is older than her, let alone Wu Dalong.
Le Chaotian looked at Lu Xiaoxiao's equal gaze and said with a smile, "Does it include me?"
Lu Xiaoxiao smiled and said, "That's natural."
"Ah, okay."
Lu Xiaoxiao took Nandao to visit various places in the Little White Sword Sect to familiarize him with them. They were just simple small courtyards surrounded by osmanthus trees. There were no libraries. After all, it was just the Little Sword Sect. .
But there is a hidden sword courtyard, but there are not many swords left in it, but there is an IOU under each sword.
Nan Dao took a quick look and found that the contents were roughly the same.
——The Tianya Sword Sect borrowed a sword handle in the 543rd year of Dafeng calendar. One day, the sword will be fulfilled and the sword will be returned in double value. Jiang Chunzi.
The name signed should be the name of the successive heads of the Tianya Sword Sect.
The one at the back became Wu Dalong.
Nan Dao was speechless.
It wasn't until they finished visiting Jianzong that Lu Xiaoxiao took the two of them to sit down on the edge of a higher cliff in the osmanthus forest behind Jianzong.
This thirty-year-old little sword cultivator seemed to be very sad, but there was some light of hope in the sadness - when she looked at Nandao.
"When I was young, when my master was chasing me all over the mountains every day, I actually thought that the hope of Lingnan might not lie with me."
Lu Xiaozhuo, still a little embarrassed, looked at Nan Dao and Le Chaotian, then at the autumn leaves all over the mountain, lowered his head, and continued.
"But later I accepted my fate. People like us may live a miserable life but only live on a narrow path."
Lu Xiaoxiao said softly and looked at Nandao again.
"Whether junior brother wants to be in Tianya Sword Sect, Xiaobai Sword Sect, or go to another Sword Sect in Lingnan, it actually doesn't matter."
Lu Xiaoxiao laughed and looked up at the clear and distant autumn sky, where maple leaves were blowing down in the canyon.
"As long as junior brother is in Lingnan, the hope of Lingnan will always be with junior brother."
Nan Dao looked at Lu Xiaoxiao blankly.
Maybe for a moment, he was infinitely moved.
Tell sir, I won’t go to Mojian Cliff.
But the momentary impulse will naturally be blown away by the cold morning breeze in September.
Nan Dao just said gently but seriously:
"good"
When Lu Xiaoxiao heard this, he smiled brightly and felt that the autumn wind was so happy.
It suddenly became clear.
