My Enemy Became My Cultivation Companion-Chapter 682 - 447: My Heart is Still Here (Two-in-One)_2

"She said, her sword is too small, but the world is too vast."

Chen Yi snapped out of his thoughts and continued:

"Back then, she held no sword in her hand."

"No sword in hand, but a sword in heart?"

Min Ning came to herself and speculated aloud.

Zhu Yu had once mentioned that she could occasionally achieve the state of no sword in hand, but a sword in heart.

With this perspective, though Zhou Yitang's words seemed elusive, they were not an unattainable realm.

"No."

Chen Yi shook his head,

"It's no sword in hand, and no sword in heart either."

Min Ning's pupils contracted slightly.

Her fingertips trembled in response.

Her emotions surged several times, and she suddenly wanted to draw her sword, as if drawing it enough could lead her to such a state. Yet once she calmed down, she realized the more she drew her sword, the further she was from that realm.

Only by seeing the sky can one recognize they stand atop a mountain peak.

"No form, no shape, no self." Min Ning paused, "Is that it?"

Chen Yi didn't know how to answer. He had never reached such a realm—perhaps when he killed Bodhisattva Yao, he was very close, but after that, it had grown distant once more.

Min Ning knew as well that Chen Yi couldn't give her an answer. She exhaled lightly, remembering that Sword Dao ultimately had to be comprehended by oneself, and she cupped her bowl to take a sip of wine.

To reach Zhou Yitang's state of forgetting self and surroundings—that was the only way to survive. And as for shattering Wu Buxu's sword, what kind of fantastical dream was that?

Min Ning didn't know. She simply lowered her gaze silently to ponder.

Suddenly, Chen Yi leaned in close to her, staring directly at her, then chuckled lightly:

"No matter how grand Wu Buxu's Sword Dao is, I can break it."

Min Ning gave him a glance, knowing his words were nothing more than comfort—as usual.

She was just about to respond when she caught sight of him—like an unfathomable whirlpool…

Her words stuck in her throat for a moment. Finally, she shook her head.

Chen Yi froze briefly, caught off guard. He had said similar things countless times, and Min Ning always nodded.

Had… she changed?

A year had passed. She should have changed. Chen Yi inexplicably found himself at a loss for words.

He could only lower his head to drink. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

In a year's separation, Min Ning's progress was swift and steady—as if walking an even path. Leaving the Capital City was like a tiger breaking free into the Jianghu; the world she saw was ever more vast and expansive. It was natural to change, and expected to change...

After a moment, Chen Yi smirked and spoke: "Martial Arts do change a person's nature. Innate compassion can turn into a propensity for killing, while bloodlust itself might transform into something akin to enlightenment. In truth, Martial Arts aren't all that different from silver, power, or love. You could even say that inert objects undergo reincarnation—silver turns into Qinggong, power into hard techniques, love into Swordsmanship, all of it altering a person's nature."

No matter how much Min Ning changed, he would have to accept her.

After all, she was the one he loved.

Min Ning mused for a moment before suddenly saying, "But the heart—if it's there, how can it change?"

Chen Yi first felt perplexed, then remained rooted in place.

Heavy black clouds pressed down against the sky's dome, lowering the entire mountain. Shadows of trees merged into one mass, encircling Chen Yi entirely; even the thunder seemed swallowed by the thick black clouds.

The weight of dark clouds threatened the city.

"My heart remains here." Min Ning gazed at him. "If so, where have you gone?"

......

Lin Feng hurriedly swept through the Absolute Sword Cavern, where Lu Ying sat hugging her knees, head hanging low, lost and dazed.

She had just awoken from a dream. Though being caught by Chen Yi was slightly embarrassing, the misunderstanding had fortunately been resolved. As Lu Ying thought this, she looked up and saw the dim sky, overcast with dense, gloom-filled clouds that severed the connection between heaven and earth. She watched as a lone dead leaf floated down. Unbidden, she recalled the dream of Chen Yi jumping from the cliff—and herself heartlessly rejecting him.

Would he really find some place to jump off a cliff?

Lu Ying shook her head, trying to shake off these messy thoughts. She walked toward the edge of the cliff.

Thunder rumbled faintly as dark clouds rolled and spread endlessly above. The oppressive dusk remained just as endless. When she had turned Chen Yi down, he had turned and walked away, his face disappearing into the darkness, as if falling into a void, never to be seen again.

Within the cavern, the sword marks were still as sharp and fierce as before; the powerful Sword Intent swirled with the wind—which suddenly caused wood and stone to whisk about wildly, as if roaring in fury. Yet... amid the storm, Lu Ying seemed to faintly hear lonely sobbing.

The swords seemed to wrap around her tightly.

And yet, Lu Ying remained all alone. She suddenly thought of her harsh words rejecting Chen Yi in the dream, as if she had brusquely pushed him off a cliff. Now that Chen Yi was gone and she was at the edge again, nobody stood by her side. The fierce winds swept past, but only icy swords lingered around her—not offering warmth, only cold desolation.

She suddenly sank into a deep, indescribable silence.

Dark clouds pressed upon the mountain peaks.

Without realizing it, she drew her sword from its sheath, fingers brushing over its cold blade. Hidden within the icy steel was the unspeakable loneliness it had borne for millennia.

One person, one sword, and thousands upon thousands of sword marks within the Absolute Sword Cavern—the female Taoist seemed to dissolve into the solitude herself.

Within her heart, an emptiness.

No form, no shape, no self.

......

Gradually, Chen Yi came to himself and laughed off the tension, saying:

"I actually thought you'd changed. Looking back now, it seems I was overthinking."

Min Ning didn't mind and gave a casual laugh, responding:

"I haven't changed at all; you're just overthinking. Chen Zunming, what are you afraid of?"

"I'm afraid the great Min Ning will start and then abandon me." Chen Yi teased.

Min Ning shifted closer, leaning in a bit:

"Even if you abandoned me, I wouldn't abandon you."

Saying this, she drained the wine in her bowl in one gulp.

Chen Yi hesitated for a moment, his heartbeat picking up speed. Then he smiled and said:

"Then… prove it?"

He missed the feeling of teasing Min Ning.

Min Ning, her eyes sharp yet tinged with a faint blush from the alcohol, glared at him intensely, her face slightly flushed.

Her single hand pressed against Chen Yi's shoulder, her slender lips lifting slightly, as if preparing to reciprocate—but seeming to hesitate, lest she give him too much ground. Gathering her breath, she kissed him directly.

Her lips met his; he pried open the barrier of her teeth.

After a long moment, their lips parted.

The two gazed into each other's eyes. Min Ning stared at him; refusing to lose face, she wouldn't look away. Chen Yi's breath became faintly hurried. If possible, he wished he could immediately make this woman—who would never admit defeat—sob and beg for mercy.

Min Ning noticed the subtle bulge beneath his dark robes, spat lightly, and said:

"Still as lecherous as ever, huh?"

Even now, she remembered the feelings of that night.

Chen Yi naturally remembered it fondly too—how Min Ning's bold yet reddened face was strangely radiant amidst the fervor of their bedchamber, a unique and unforgettable sensation.

Min Ning raised her wine bowl and spoke: "More drinks?"

Chen Yi didn't resist; naturally, he wrapped an arm around her waist and replied, "Drinks."

Perhaps to borrow the intoxication of wine, to moisten their parched throats—they swapped bowls. Chen Yi passed his bowl to her, and Min Ning caught on, handing her bowl to his lips, as if reenacting the exchange of cups seen at a wedding.

The moment seemed fixed in time…

A faint yet chilling voice abruptly interrupted:

"You two… are quite affectionate, aren't you?"

Chen Yi's hand paused, the wine in the bowl quivering slightly.

"Absence makes the heart grow fonder, doesn't it…"

Min Ning turned her face to look, and after a moment of surprise, her brows furrowed slightly.

Sweeping in with a flutter of white robes, the female crown approached with a pale complexion, gaze planted firmly and bitterly on the pair exchanging wedding-like drinks.

Evidently, she and he had long since been married…

But why, in her heart, did it feel so… so… sour and bitter…?

Chen Yi froze awkwardly, unsure of what to do. A stream of potential words flashed through his mind, his thoughts tangled and conflicted.

But Min Ning, smiling slyly, suddenly drank the wine without reservation—kissed Chen Yi with the liquid still in her mouth directly in front of Yin Weiyin.

Yin Weiyin's eyes widened, never expecting Min Ning to be so audacious as to flaunt her passion right before her.

For the first time in ages, she felt the shock and fury of having her Dao companion snatched away.

After their kiss broke, Min Ning wiped the wine stains away, her expression half gleeful, half provocative.

"You… you're shameless!"

Min Ning lazily replied: "I'm just a dirt-stomping commoner; shamelessness is in my nature."

Yin Weiyin was utterly enraged internally, glaring daggers at Chen Yi, her eyes filled with a mix of indignation and indescribable grievance, as if silently pleading for his comforting words.

After hesitating briefly, Yin Weiyin tried to calm herself, speaking haltingly: "…Come here."

Chen Yi broke into a cold sweat and started to get up to appease her. Yet Min Ning pushed the wine bowl toward him, her brow raised slightly, silently asking: Won't you finish drinking with me?

Whoosh!

Cold wind swept through. Trapped between the two women, Chen Yi broke out in a full sweat, so troubled his mind nearly emptied entirely.

Not only were they rivals to him,

But these two women—they were sworn enemies.

The Spring and Autumn Swordmaster, the Taichua Goddess…

Life ahead could only grow more difficult.