Chapter 10 — Sword God Appears

News about the reappearance of the sword god Tang Phong Mon spread at breakneck speed, far beyond Lang Uyen citadel, reaching far away sects in Lang Uyen land and even neighboring towns. For eighteen years, people in the martial world had come to regard the sword god Vu Bach Trinh as a legend from the past, a name mentioned only in stories told to younger generations; few people still remembered clearly what he looked like.

Therefore, when news about a person calling himself Vu Bach Trinh reappeared, using the Hidden Wind Sword Technique to defeat a large group of assassins in the middle of the market, the martial world couldn't help but stir up discussion. Many people suspect that this is just an impostor, taking advantage of a legendary name to build prestige. But many people believe that this is the truth, because not everyone can practice to such a sophisticated level a sword technique that has been lost for nearly two decades.

Even the living elders of Tang Phong Mon, who witnessed Bach Trinh's quiet passing eighteen years ago, were shocked to hear the news. Some people were happy because they finally knew that the old sword god was still alive, others were worried, fearing that this sudden reappearance would revive old stories that the sect had long tried to close, especially the never-cleared questions surrounding Chuc Thanh Phong's death.

Among those interested in this news, there was Ly Ton Dao, the sect leader of the Thanh Van Sect, a sect with no small reputation in the surrounding area, who had had good relations with the Tang Phong Sect many generations ago. Ly Ton Dao, after hearing the news, immediately brought a few trusted disciples to Thanh Lang Uyen, with the purpose of verifying the truth, and at the same time could not hide his personal curiosity about the person who was once considered one of the most talented swordsmen of his generation.

He went to the inn where Bach Trinh was staying and asked for an audience. Bach Trinh, although he did not want to get involved too much with old martial-world connections, also understood that avoiding them would only make things more complicated, so he agreed to meet. The two sat opposite each other in a simple motel room. Ly Ton Dao stared at Bach Trinh's face for a long time, then nodded slightly and sighed: "It's indeed you. We haven't seen each other for many years, but you still maintain that demeanor, even though it's a bit more rugged than before."

"It turns out Brother Ly still remembers me," Bach Trinh replied, his voice somewhat polite. "It's been eighteen years, I thought the martial world had completely forgotten an unknown person like me." Ly Ton Dao shook his head: "How can I forget? In the past, you and Chuc brother were once the pride of an entire generation of martial artists. Many people admired your talent and kindness. After you suddenly disappeared, many people wondered and asked everywhere, but no one could find any clues. I thought you had encountered an accident, but who would have thought that today I would meet you again in this situation."

Ly Ton Dao delicately inquired about the reason why Bach Trinh reappeared after so many years of seclusion, as well as the relationship between him and the girl who owned the pharmacy who was being pursued. Bach Trinh considered carefully, and finally decided to tell part of the truth, not hiding the fact that Dieu Vy was Thanh Phong's daughter, and that she was being chased by a mysterious assassin organization for a reason related to the past that he was still trying to clarify.

Hearing this, Ly Ton Dao pondered for a long time, then said: "If it's true as you say, I'm afraid this is not a small matter. The Ghost Shadow Police Department, this name has also been heard in the news recently, it is rumored that this is one of the most tightly organized and cruel assassin organizations today, has caused many shocking assassinations among local merchants and officials, but no one has ever found the whereabouts of the leader. If you suspect that it is related to your old story, Tang Phong Mon, I think you should be extra careful, because the opponent this time may not be as simple as what you have faced before."

Bach Trinh nodded, thanking Ly Ton Dao for his sincere warning. Before leaving, Ly Ton Dao also offered to support if Bach Trinh needed the help of the Thanh Van Sect, even if it was just a few disciples to escort or spy on information, as a partial response to the old friendship between the two sects in the past. Bach Trinh gratefully accepted the invitation, although he still maintained a certain amount of caution in his heart, because the world was complicated, people's hearts were unpredictable, and he could not hastily trust absolutely anyone, including those who had had relationships in the past.

After the meeting with Ly Ton Dao, in the following days, a few more characters from different sects and guilds came to Thanh Lang Uyen, partly out of curiosity to confirm the rumors, partly because they wanted to see if the reappearance of the sword god would have any impact on the current situation of the martial world. There are people who come with good intentions, and there are also people who bring their own calculations, wanting to take advantage of Bach Trinh's reputation for personal purposes, or vice versa, to see if there is any opportunity to dethrone a big name to enhance their own prestige.

Bach Trinh treats everyone with a calm attitude, neither showing off nor showing weakness, keeping true to the spirit of Hidden Wind Sword Technique that he has been honing since childhood: not showing off his strength, but also not letting anyone look down on him.

One evening, while sitting alone reviewing the day's encounters, Bach Trinh suddenly realized that The martial world, despite its size and complexity, actually still operated according to familiar rules that he learned from his youth: the strong always attract attention, and that attention always came with both opportunities and dangers. He understands that each guest who came to him had his own purpose, some were sincere, some were inquisitive, but all were part of the price to pay when a name that had been hidden for eighteen years suddenly reappears in the middle of gossip. Dieu Vy, witnessing those meetings, gradually realized that the man she thought was just an ordinary traveler, turned out to have a significant position in the vast martial world, a world that she previously only knew about through word of mouth.

One time, standing behind the curtains of the inn, she heard Bach Trinh respond to a strange guest with unfamiliar words, signals, and greetings with profound meanings that she could not understand, while he, who still sat next to her packing medicine every day, said them fluently as if it were a natural thing that was deeply ingrained in his flesh and blood. At that moment, she suddenly felt like a person standing outside the door looking into a familiar but strange room. She began to feel an invisible distance forming between herself and Bach Trinh, not because he intentionally distanced himself, but because she realized that his world was much larger and more complicated than the simple life she was used to. But at the same time, she also felt that, no matter how many complicated martial-world connections, Bach Trinh's eyes whenever he looked at her, always maintained the same sincere concern as the first days of meeting, as if for him, protecting her was always the top priority, surpassing all other martial-world concerns.

There was another guest, dressed in a merchant's style, claiming to be a member of a silk trading guild. He came with a polite appearance, but the question focused on whether Bach Trinh intended to restore the position of Tang Phong Mon in the world or not, and intended to compete for influence with other forces. Bach Trinh immediately recognized that this was the type of person who always looked at everything through the lens of benefits, trying to evaluate whether his return would bring benefit or harm to their own calculations. He answered briefly that he had no intention of fighting over anything, he simply wanted to protect someone and find out the truth about an old story. This made the guest somewhat disappointed but did not dare to express his attitude, only saying goodbye and leaving after a few polite words.

What Bach Trinh couldn't know was that as soon as he left the inn's gate, the silk merchant turned into a deserted alley, immediately changing his previous strutting gait into quick, neat steps. He pulled into an empty restaurant, scribbled a few lines on a thin piece of silk with special quick-drying ink, rolled it up and stuffed it into a small bamboo tube, and tied it to the leg of a carrier pigeon hidden in a carrier cage. The bird flapped its wings and flew straight to the north, carrying a brief message: "The Sword God confirms that he is still alive, is protecting his target, has no intention of competing for power, just searching for the old truth. Please give instructions." The businessman was not a member of the Demon Shadow Police Department, just one of many reconnaissance leads scattered throughout the world that the organization still silently nurtured with generous sums of money, specializing in selling information to whoever paid the highest price, and this time, the highest price came from the person who needed to know the most about his newly appeared opponent.

That night, after seeing the last guest leave the inn, Bach Trinh stood alone by the window, looking at the moonlight hanging in the night sky of Thanh Lang Uyen, thinking endlessly about what was waiting ahead. His reappearance has created an underground wave in the martial world, and he knows that sooner or later that wave will reach the ears of the person hiding behind the name Black Eagle, forcing that person to take more drastic moves to deal with the threat that the return of the sword god brings to the secrets he has tried to hide for the past eighteen years.

He looked down at the sword placed on the table, the moonlight reflecting on the steel blade creating a cold streak of light, and told himself that no matter how difficult the road ahead was, he would no longer back down like he had done for the past eighteen years. This time, he will face all dangers with his true self, no longer having to hide in the guise of an anonymous old woodcutter in the depths of the mountains.