Chen Ping’an was somewhat surprised. It was rare to encounter someone on Upside-down Mountain who spoke the elegant language of Eastern Treasure Continent. However, having traveled so far, knowing that monks don’t reveal their names and Daoists don’t speak of their lifespan, it seemed improper to abruptly ask a stranger about their origins.

Chen Ping’an led the couple into the Sword Reverence Pavilion, relaying to them what Jin Su had told him. Possessing a remarkable memory since childhood, Chen Ping’an could recall the names, sword names, and rough biographies of each sword replica and sword immortal portrait as long as he had made a conscious effort to remember them. He could instantly provide the couple with the details.

As he guided the couple through the pavilion, another thought crossed Chen Ping’an’s mind. Since he had already wielded a sword, he might as well stay on Upside-down Mountain for a while longer, meticulously recording certain sword immortals and immortal swords that caught his eye in the Sword Reverence Pavilion. Later, he could bring them back to the bamboo lodge on Fallen Phoenix Mountain and browse through them when he was bored, like those small bamboo slips inscribed with beautiful poems and worldly wisdom. Even a distant glance at them under the sun would make Chen Ping’an feel exceptionally comfortable, warm, as if the sunlight was shining not on the bamboo slips and words, but directly onto his heart.

He could practice his calligraphy while transcribing and copying, but he wondered if the writing brushes, ink, and paper on Upside-down Mountain would be very expensive.

The young woman smiled and said, “Your memory is quite impressive.”

Chen Ping’an snapped out of his thoughts and grinned. This skill was nothing special on the mountain. He figured the lady was just being polite.

Chen Ping’an was being unduly modest this time, because the discerning couple had already ascertained that every time Chen Ping’an looked at a particular immortal sword replica, he already had a clear understanding of it. This was called “the mind arrives before the gaze.” It was a well-known bottleneck for sword cultivators, determining their ultimate height, whether they were mere sword cultivators bound by their flying swords or great Dao sword immortals who controlled myriad sword intents.

After walking through most of the rooms, Chen Ping’an patiently continued to accompany the couple who were examining everything carefully. He had already explained the general history of the Sword Reverence Pavilion, so what followed was simply choosing to admire sword immortals or famous swords based on personal interest. However, the woman occasionally chatted with Chen Ping’an, and he continued to follow them. Although Chen Ping’an had visited the Sword Reverence Pavilion once before, he knew almost nothing about the Great Wall of Swords, except for the eternally famous sword immortals on the walls. On the contrary, the woman, who had come to admire them, narrated many legends and anecdotes of the sword immortals. For example, she told him that the founding ancestor surnamed Dong’s sword was named “Three Corpses” not because he believed in Taoism, but because he had once ventured alone into the heart of the demon realm and killed three high-ranking demon lords along the way. The Dong family rose to prominence in the Great Wall of Swords because of this, and later almost every patriarch of the Dong family had personally slain Jade Purity Realm or even Immortal Realm demon lords…

Since they were discussing the Dong family, the woman excitedly led Chen Ping’an to find the immortal sword replica named “Bamboo Case.” The sword’s owner was a mid-era ancestor of the Dong family. At that time, the Dong family was in decline, with the patriarch severely injured and killed by a great demon, and the family’s sword aura was waning. Then, a young Golden Core Realm sword cultivator from the Dong family resolutely carried an ancestral sword called “Ten Feet High” and embarked on the same path of slaying demons that the ancestor had taken. Despite everyone’s skepticism, two hundred years later, this sword cultivator returned to the Great Wall of Swords alone, carrying a bamboo case containing the head of a thirteenth realm great demon. Before ascending the city walls, he carved the Dong family name onto the Great Wall of Swords with his nearly shattered sword, “Ten Feet High.”

From then on, he forged a new sword, which was named “Bamboo Case.”

The Dong family had since remained one of the most influential families in the Great Wall of Swords.

After chatting, the woman learned that the young man’s surname was Chen, and she smiled and asked Chen Ping’an if he had noticed the sword “Flying Mountain.”

Chen Ping’an smiled shyly, a little embarrassed, because the owner of this strangely named immortal sword was also surnamed Chen. Therefore, Chen Ping’an had paid particular attention to it, remembering it clearly. In fact, Chen Ping’an had diligently remembered all the sword immortals with the surname Chen, including the immortals and their swords. If he had learned to draw and had a skilled painter like the ones from Guihua Island to learn from, Chen Ping’an would have hoped to bring the likenesses of these “sword immortals” back to Fallen Phoenix Mountain in the coming days.

Afterwards, the woman smiled and selected several deceased friends of the Chen family sword immortals for Chen Ping’an, telling him those soul-stirring stories.

When someone told the stories in words, instead of the cold, concise records in writing, the stories were often very exciting, like monuments and swaying willow trees on the banks of the long river of time. Later generations could feel their shade standing under the trees, and beyond the shade, there were storms. That section of the river of time was turbulent and dramatic.

Chen Ping’an, who had originally planned to never drink again, couldn’t help but start drinking again.

Not being liked by the girl one likes is a very sad thing, but the sky hasn’t fallen, and one must live as one must.

This was something Chen Ping’an suddenly realized upon returning to the Sword Reverence Pavilion.

However, Chen Ping’an would not feel that his heartbreak was insignificant after learning about the heroic demeanor of so many sword immortals.

This was even more uncomfortable than being beaten half to death in the bamboo lodge on Fallen Phoenix Mountain.

The two kinds of discomfort were different. The former could be endured and passed.

But the latter’s discomfort seemed like it might not be overcome in a day, a month, a year, a hundred years, or even a lifetime.

The strangest thing was that Chen Ping’an felt even more uncomfortable at the thought of liking another girl in the future.

The books said that drinking to relieve sorrow only made the sorrow worse, which was why he had been so afraid to drink before.

Unknowingly, from Chen Ping’an’s initial guiding to the woman’s detailed descriptions and explanations in the end, both of them naturally felt that there was nothing inappropriate about it.

Then Chen Ping’an saw the man, standing at the entrance of the last room, smiling at him and the woman.

The man didn’t like to talk. When they were traveling together before, he would only occasionally glance at Chen Ping’an.
Entering the last room, they approached the sword stands where Zhuruyu and Youhuang were placed side-by-side. The woman exclaimed in surprise, “Why are there no portraits for these two? I heard the master of the Zhuruyu sword was a very handsome man from the Great Wall of Swords!”

Chen Pingan felt a bit embarrassed and cautiously glanced at the man beside him, hoping he wouldn’t get jealous.

Unexpectedly, the man immediately retorted, “The mistress of the Youhuang sword is also a rare beauty in the world.”

Chen Pingan immediately felt indignant for the woman. What was wrong with a few jokes from a woman? As a man, he should be more magnanimous, why be so confrontational?

The woman rolled her eyes at her man and said to Chen Pingan with a smile, “Thank you for showing me around the Jingjian Pavilion this time.”

Chen Pingan waved his hand, “It’s nothing, I love wandering around here myself. I’ll be coming back for the next few days.”

The man narrowed his eyes and said, “I heard there’s a little simpleton in the Jingjian Pavilion who likes to wipe saliva on these two swords and their stands. Could that be you?”

Chen Pingan didn’t want to cause any unnecessary trouble, so he pretended to be completely clueless and waved his hands vigorously, “No, no, why would I be so silly?”

The woman secretly stepped on the man’s foot, then said to Chen Pingan, “We’re leaving now, would you like to leave with us?”

The man suddenly asked, “Seeing that you also enjoy drinking, would you like to have a drink? I know a good place with cheap and good wine, but it’s only for acquaintances.”

Chen Pingan shook his head.

The man said impatiently, “Just drink when someone offers you wine. Are you afraid of villains in the Upside-Down Mountain? Besides, do we look like people who would covet your broken sword and broken sword-nurturing gourd?”

Chen Pingan felt a little awkward.

This man was too straightforward.

The man received another kick from the woman, who complained, “Who was it who said they hated people who pushed others to drink the most?”

The man didn’t dare to argue with his wife, so he glared at Chen Pingan.

Chen Pingan then gave the woman a bright smile.

The man became even more annoyed but was already being pulled by the woman towards the doorway.

The three of them walked out of the Jingjian Pavilion and down the steps together.

The man held it in for a long time before asking, “Really not drinking? The Forget-Worry Wine of the Upside-Down Mountain is something all the drunkards and wine immortals of the entire Vast World want to drink. It’s said to be a unique wine-making method left by the Confucian Sage of Rites back then. Once you miss this opportunity, you won’t find another. You better think it over before you answer me.”

Chen Pingan lowered his head and looked at his sword-nurturing gourd. There wasn’t much Osmanthus Flower Brew left inside.

The man clicked his tongue and said, “Kid, with your hesitant personality, I doubt you’ll even find a wife.”

This remark really hit Chen Pingan where it hurt. He thought to himself, “I’m only in this state BECAUSE I wasn’t hesitant! Otherwise, I might still be strolling and enjoying the scenery with Miss Ning! Now look at me, wandering around Upside-Down Mountain like a lonely wandering ghost in the middle of the night!”

Chen Pingan snorted, “Not drinking! So what if I don’t have a wife!”

This was a rare outburst of temper from Chen Pingan.

His gaze shifted, and he was much more polite to the woman, cupping his hands and saying, “Madam, until we meet again.”

The young woman smiled and said, “The Forget-Worry Wine of the Upside-Down Mountain is worth trying. Even an ordinary Jade Purity Realm Qi cultivator has a hard time getting a single cup. We have some connections with the shopkeeper over there, so we can enter the wine shop. If you really like drinking, then don’t miss it. Well, even if you don’t like drinking, it’s best not to miss it.”

Chen Pingan hesitated a bit.

The man started complaining, “Look at him, so indecisive. Do you even like him? I certainly don’t.”

Chen Pingan’s face darkened. He thought, “Why would I need you to like me?”

Actually, Chen Pingan was like a drunkard who hadn’t fully sobered up tonight, and his temper wasn’t very good. After all, even a clay figure has some anger.

The woman ignored the petty man, patted the young man’s shoulder, and teased, “Let’s go, let’s go have a drink together. I can tell you have something on your mind. When we’re drinking, don’t pay attention to whatever this guy is nagging about, just drink your own wine. The world is vast, but the wine cup is the biggest. The mountains are high and the rivers are long, but the wine is the deepest.”

Chen Pingan scratched his head and followed the woman forward.

The man followed behind them, glancing back at the Jingjian Pavilion and twitching his lips.

A Daoist nun responsible for guarding the Jingjian Pavilion on the Upside-Down Mountain, after being thrown out of the pavilion, arrived at the plaza at the foot of Lonely Peak Mountain. She tearfully accused the man of his wrongdoings to the little Daoist boy who was reading a book. The little Daoist boy listlessly listened to the Daoist nun’s indignant words and asked, “You don’t even know who he is, do you?”

The Golden Core Realm Daoist nun shook her head blankly.

The little Daoist boy nodded, “Then ignorance is bliss. You may leave.”

The Daoist nun became even more puzzled.

The sword-bearing man tied to the hitching post gloated, “A teacher’s laziness is a failure to teach.”

The little Daoist boy angrily retorted, “Bullshit! That’s a bastard saying from the Confucians! My lineage has never promoted that! When has cultivation ever NOT been one’s own business?!”

The Daoist nun was so frightened that she trembled and stood still, lowering her eyes and not daring to move.

The sword-bearing man not only didn’t know when to quit but added fuel to the fire, joking, “No wonder the portraits of your Daoist Ancestors in the Incense Tower are hung so high, separated from your three Grandmasters by hundreds of thousands of miles.”

The little Daoist boy jumped to his feet, “Are you looking for a fight?”

The sword-bearing man laughed and said, “Luckily you didn’t say you were seeking death, otherwise I would have criticized you for talking nonsense. I don’t have any other advantages, just like Ah Liang said, I’m just a straight shooter, so Ah Liang said that I’m one of the best at flattering and exposing people’s flaws on the Great Wall of Swords.”

The little Daoist boy gnashed his teeth in anger, put his hands behind his back, and spun around on the large prayer mat, muttering to himself: “You think you’re the Ah Liang here? You’re just a native refugee from over there… If it weren’t for my Master’s warning to be kind to others, I would beat you black and blue today! I don’t care if you’re suppressed by the heavens and earth here and dropped half a realm! I don’t care if it’s an unfair victory! I’d beat you so you wouldn’t dare to see anyone for a year! I’d beat you just like that Senior Brother on Lonely Peak back then… I’ve disliked you for several years…”

The Daoist nun, who had originally thought her Master would support her, regretted her actions when she saw her Master flying into a rare rage. She shouldn’t have come here.

Especially after her Master accidentally revealed some heavenly secrets, the Daoist nun felt that her days on the Upside-Down Mountain would be very difficult.
That Celestial Lord, the senior master of the lone peak at the mountain’s core, might not bother with him, but his most esteemed disciple, that Azure Dragon True Lord who held the whisk, the current third-in-command of Upside-down Mountain, was renowned for his reverence for his masters. He would surely make life difficult for her until the end of time, most definitely…

The Daoist nun felt like weeping.

Why was her own master such a non-protective figure?

On the street outside Sword Reverence Pavilion, Chen Ping An, for some inexplicable reason, had finished browsing the pavilion with the couple, and then, for some other strange reason, followed them to some wine shop to drink “Forget-Sorrow Wine.”

Occasionally, in a daze, or when asked a question by the lady, it felt like a long time had passed, yet also as if it hadn’t even been the time it takes for an incense stick to burn. The three arrived at a wine shop that was still open, but business was slow. There wasn’t a single customer in the shop. There was only a young shop assistant dozing off at a wine table, and an old man behind the counter teasing a caged bird.

The old shopkeeper glanced at the couple. “Rare guests, rare guests. This wine must be brought out.”

Then, he glanced at the sword-carrying youth behind them, frowned, but sighed and said nothing, as if, out of consideration for their connection, he was turning a blind eye.

Then, the old man roared at the lazy assistant, “Xu Jia! Sleeping, sleeping, why don’t you just sleep yourself to death! We have customers, go fetch a jar of wine!”

The youth named Xu Jia abruptly woke up, wiped his drool, and stood up weakly, slouching as he fetched a jar of wine and placed it on the table where the three were seated. He yawned and said, “Three esteemed guests, drink slowly. As always, we don’t serve food here.”

The lady nodded in acknowledgement, then smiled at Chen Ping An, who was sitting opposite her. “There was once a very powerful monk who traveled here and drank the Forget-Sorrow Wine, praising it to the skies, claiming that only this wine could break the Buddha within him.”

The old shopkeeper laughed. “Of course, that old monk was truly formidable. I’m afraid even if Ah Liang hacked at him a few times, he wouldn’t be able to break the baldy’s Abbot’s realm.”

Ultimately, he still wanted to say that his own wine was the most powerful in the world.

However, Chen Ping An was happy in his heart when he heard Ah Liang mentioned in Upside-down Mountain.

So this time, he really wanted to drink a little wine.

As a result, the old man slapped the counter, filled with anger. “Damn it, every time I mention Ah Liang, I get angry! He owes me more than twenty jars of wine money, the only one in the whole world! Back then, Chen Chun’an of the Saha Continent, and the female Martial God not long ago, and even those old geezers from the Hundred Schools of Philosophers, who dared to owe me money for wine?”

“Let’s just talk about that scholar from the Central Earth Divine Continent. When he was at his most down-on-his-luck, before he became famous, he was just a small Sea Gazing Realm Qi cultivator, writing a hundred poems with a dipper of wine! What dipper? It was my wine! But even then, he only owed me a total of less than four or five jars of wine over three visits. Ah Liang is committing sins, and I’m suffering the consequences!”

The lady winked at Chen Ping An, as if to say that the old man was just like that, let him talk, don’t pay him any attention.

The young shop assistant said sullenly, “Old man, can you stop mentioning Ah Liang? Miss hasn’t returned to Upside-down Mountain because of him, I miss her so much.”

The old man immediately lowered his voice, muttering, “That kind of ungrateful daughter, it’s better to leave her outside to harm others.”

After opening the wine jar and pouring a large bowl for each of them, the man, true to the lady’s words, hated people who urged others to drink. He said straightforwardly, “Drink if you want, don’t drink if you don’t.”

Chen Ping An carefully took a small sip. It didn’t have much flavor, just a bit stronger than Sweet Osmanthus Brew, but not to the point of being a fiery blade that cuts the liver and severs the intestines. Chen Ping An took two more small sips, but his throat and stomach still didn’t react, so he completely relaxed. He figured that this Forget-Sorrow Wine had other profound secrets, not just in its taste.

After each person drank two large bowls, the jar was empty.

The lady turned to look at the old shopkeeper with a smile and asked for another jar. The old man looked at the lady’s beaming smile, sighed, and personally brought another jar, gently placing the two jars of wine on the table. “Three jars of wine, all on the house. They’re not on the bill.”

Chen Ping An’s face was flushed, but his mind was clear and lucid, as if he wasn’t drunk at all. However, he could clearly feel his tipsy state.

After drinking the wine, he wanted to say a little more.

Like those burps, it’s nothing to hold them back, but it’s better to release them.

At first, the man buried his head in drinking, or looked out of the shop, his mind wandering to distant lands.

The lady seemed to enjoy chatting with Chen Ping An, talking about everything from Chen Ping An’s hometown to his two distant journeys.

Since Chen Ping An wasn’t drunk, he only picked the people and events that he could talk about.

Later, he didn’t know how, but they started talking about that girl.

Chen Ping An, who had decided to finish four large bowls of wine and then stop, silently poured himself a bowl. He still didn’t mention the sword, just said that he had something to do and was leaving his hometown to come to Upside-down Mountain. He happened to know a girl whose home was near the Great Wall of Swords, and then the two of them met, just that simple.

The lady smiled. “So you traveled a long way?”

Chen Ping An held the bowl, thought for a moment, and shook his head. “Not far. I thought that every step I took was getting me closer, so I didn’t feel like it was far.”

The man sneered. “How long have you known that girl, how long have you spent time with her? And you’re already saying you like her? Isn’t that a little frivolous?”

Chen Ping An didn’t know how to refute him, just said sullenly, “Who I like, I can’t control myself. If you think it’s frivolous, then you think so, I don’t care what you think.”

The man snorted, probably hurt by Chen Ping An’s words. The key was that the youth said it so sincerely.

There were rumors on the mountain, true or false.

He who drinks Forget-Sorrow Wine, is a true hearted man.

The lady consoled him. “Then you were rejected by the girl? Don’t be discouraged. Have you ever heard that some people are destined to be right as long as they meet? If they can meet again, it’s the best thing.”

Chen Ping An took a big gulp of wine, his eyes blurred with intoxication, but his eyes were clear and bottomless, like a stream of secluded spring water. Happiness, sadness, regret, joy, all were flowing, and all were clean. The youth shook his head and laughed. “If you like someone, you have to make her happy, right? If you think that if you like someone, that person must be with you, is that still love?”
Speaking of this, tears streamed down the young man’s face. “But I’m just saying it. Actually, I’m heartbroken. I wish the entire Upside-Down Mountain, the whole Great Balance World, knew that I cherish that girl. And I only hope there’s only one such girl in the world who likes me…”

In the end, Chen Ping An was truly drunk. He had forgotten how many bowls of wine he had drunk, and his head was resting on the table, muttering to himself.

He even forgot how he had argued and even fought with a man.

In a dreamlike state, between wakefulness and sleep, he seemed to have risen from the fourth realm to the seventh realm in a fit of anger, severing his ties with the strongest fourth realm of martial arts. The woman seemed to have asked him if it was worth giving up his martial arts future for the sake of fighting for the girl’s parents. “How will you become the most powerful sword immortal in the world, a grand sword immortal?”

Chen Ping An’s answer at the time was, “Cherishing a girl isn’t just words. If I don’t do this today, assuming you were Ning Yao’s parents, would you think that if I, Chen Ping An, became truly wealthy, had a high cultivation level, and became a grand sword immortal, I would pay a truly important price for your daughter? No… Such affection wouldn’t be that strong. It would definitely be a deception from the start…”

Chen Ping An no longer remembered any of this.

The old shopkeeper remained calm.

He had seen countless human conditions over thousands of years.

The young shop assistant watched with great interest from the side.

Finally, Chen Ping An had completely passed out drunk. The man glanced at the youth, took a sip of wine, and said, “I still don’t like this kid. He’s a blockhead, clumsy, dull, not romantic enough, not magnanimous enough. His aptitude is passable, his temperament is so-so, and his temper is stubborn at first glance. What if he quarrels with our daughter in the future, and neither of them is willing to budge? With our daughter’s personality, would she admit her mistakes and soften?”

The woman smiled and said, “Admit her mistakes? You also know that our daughter is mostly at fault? You know that the boy will always give in to her?”

The man felt a little guilty and stopped talking sheepishly.

The woman suddenly smiled slightly and said, “Come to think of it, you said earlier that the child isn’t romantic enough. Is it the romanticism of scholars and poets, or the romanticism of someone who frequents brothels?”

There was hidden killing intent.

The man had a flash of inspiration and greatly admired himself. He picked up his wine bowl and said heroically, “It’s the romanticism of inscribing characters on the Sword Qi Great Wall!”

The woman smiled.

The man gave a dry laugh and found a way to excuse himself, “Actually, this silly boy is pretty good. Our daughter really needs to find someone like this.”

The woman smiled warmly and looked outside the shop, muttering to herself for no reason, “I’m sorry.”

Her husband, daughter Ning Yao, the Sword Qi Great Wall, and the Great Balance World.

She was sorry to them all.

The illusions cast by the man and woman had dissipated after Chen Ping An had passed out drunk.

The girl Chen Ping An cherished was like him and like her.

The man sitting beside her gently held the woman’s hand, “We only owe our daughter, not anyone else.”

The man suddenly smiled brightly and looked at Chen Ping An, “Our daughter’s vision is remarkable.”

The woman nodded with a smile, “She takes after me.”

The man suddenly said helplessly, “Is it that hard for this scatterbrained, silly daughter to say that sentence?”

The woman nodded and said, “Of course it’s hard. Which girl who cherishes the other person wants the boy who likes her to cherish a girl who will die on the battlefield?”

The man touched his forehead. “Crap! You’re confusing me!”

On the Dragon-Slaying Platform cliff of the Sword Qi Great Wall.

She lay there and said softly, “Chen Ping An, listen to me, it’s not that I don’t like you.”