"What you saw earlier was how I looked when I awakened from Nirvana and regained new life." Jun Bai gazed at the tombstone in front of him, his eyes filled with reminiscence.
"At that time, because of Nirvana, I lost all my power. Not only did my form regress to that of my newborn state, but I was also gravely wounded by the lingering will of the Dream God, leading to complete amnesia."
"With no memories left, I fell into the water and eventually drifted to Qingce Village."
"It was Second Brother—the one later generations call the Qingce Sword Immortal—who rescued me from the water."
"After saving me, Second Brother brought the amnesiac me back to the Jun family. Mother kindly took me in and named me Jun Bai."
[So that's where this mortal name came from.]
[Meaning the important person who named Jun Bai wasn't the Qingce Sword Immortal, but the Qingce Sword Immortal's mother—Jun Bai's foster mother.]
[But Jun Bai calls the Qingce Sword Immortal "Second Brother"… Could the Jun family actually have just two brothers?]
Paimon raised her hand at this moment: "Jun Bai, I have a question."
"Little Jun Bai is you, so why do you and he address the Qingce Sword Immortal differently?"
One calls him Big Brother, the other calls him Second Brother.
"It's just a matter of time. In the time I was in back then, I hadn't yet sworn brotherhood with Second Brother, so I addressed him directly as Big Brother."
"Sworn brotherhood? The Marshal actually swore brotherhood with someone?" Xingqiu asked with interest.
"Yes—Big Brother, Second Brother, and me. We swore an oath in the name of the Geo Archon and the Dust God, under the witness of heaven and earth.
"Not born on the same year, month, or day, but willing to die on the same year, month, and day. Unfortunately, that vow ultimately could not be fulfilled—or rather, it was impossible from the very beginning."
Even if Jun Mo Li had no issues, the lifespan gap between humans and gods was still vast. One day, Second Brother would inevitably pass first.
"Second Brother is the Qingce Sword Immortal, Third Brother is the Sky Phoenix Marshal—so naturally Big Brother isn't some nameless figure who would be forgotten in history." Hu Tao guessed.
Jun Bai nodded: "Director is correct. Five hundred years ago, the nameless adeptus who suddenly appeared during the Black Beast invasion and then vanished in The Chasm—that was my sworn Big Brother."
[Ah? miHoYo, you're really going for the knife here too.]
[After foreshadowing knives later, you give me one early to help me adapt? Thanks a lot!]
"Sorry, Marshal." Hu Tao apologized at lightspeed.
"It's fine—after all, it's been five hundred years." Jun Bai smiled calmly. "Besides, it's only disappearance, not confirmed death. We should still look at it optimistically."
"If you want to express apology, then learn from Lumine and Chongyun and stay quiet. Quietly listen as I tell you the story—of my Second Brother, of the Qingce Sword Immortal as the world knows him."
Jun Bai took a deep breath, then half-closed his eyes: "The youth was born in the Jun family of Qingce Village. There were no anomalies that day—just a very ordinary day."
"The Jun family, even before the Archon War began, was a renowned sword-forging clan. The famous swords they forged possessed the power to wound gods. This wasn't exaggeration—it truly happened."
"In my first life, it was with a sword from the Jun family that I slew the Dream God and his entire army."
"And within this sword-forging clan, there was a sword passed down through generations—the pinnacle masterpiece of Jun family swordsmithing. Only the greatest swordsman in the world could draw it."
Jun Bai's fingertips rested on the rusted sword hilt in front of the tomb.
Everyone understood—this was that famous sword, the one the Sword Immortal had drawn.
"Since this sword was born, generations of the Jun family aimed to draw it. My foster father, Jun Xiao, was no exception. Unfortunately, no one ever succeeded."
"Generation after generation of the Jun family, influenced by their ancestors and parents, would set their goal from childhood to become the greatest swordsman in the world. But Second Brother was different—Second Brother actually didn't like learning swordsmanship."
Everyone showed surprised expressions.
The Qingce Sword Immortal, the unrivaled master of swordsmanship in the world, actually didn't like learning the sword?
Xingqiu suddenly felt like maybe not learning sword wasn't such a bad thing.
Jun Bai's hand now rested on that piece of decayed wood:
"In the year Second Brother was born, monsters attacked Qingce Village. Foster Father went alone to resist them. In the end, he was tainted by god remnants and passed away when Second Brother was five."
"After Foster Father died, according to Mother, the once lively and cheerful Second Brother suddenly underwent a drastic change in temperament."
"He destroyed his favorite toys, then picked up a wooden sword and practiced day after day, year after year, by the waterfall—the sword forms Foster Father had taught him."
"Second Brother said he chose to take up Foster Father's Vision from his hand and inherit Foster Father's wish."
"He wanted to become the greatest swordsman in the world."
[Suddenly my eyes feel a little moist.]
[At the age when he loved playing the most, he chose to pick up a sword he didn't like because of his father's wish…]
"Second Brother kept practicing swordsmanship. Gradually, among his peers, only Big Brother was willing to stay close to him."
"Big Brother practiced fist techniques. Every day he would spar with Second Brother—only to end in defeat each time."
"When Big Brother and Second Brother were eight, the amnesiac me fell from the waterfall. I was rescued by Second Brother and Big Brother, and then adopted by Mother."
"At that time we hadn't yet sworn brotherhood, but Second Brother was already my Big Brother, so I would often go to the waterfall to watch Second Brother practice swordsmanship and watch Big Brother spar with him."
"One day, Big Brother fought Second Brother to a draw. After that, I proposed wanting to spar with Second Brother."
"At that time, though I had no memories, the swordsmanship the Geo Archon taught me was like instinct—I could use it without remembering. So Second Brother was easily defeated."
"From my swordsmanship, Second Brother comprehended something and unintentionally severed the waterfall. At that time, he was only ten."
"Unfortunately, it was just a fluke. Before his swordsmanship reached mastery, Second Brother never managed to sever the waterfall again. But defeating Big Brother was enough."
Recalling Li Tonghui's instant defeat, Jun Bai couldn't help but chuckle. That scene remained vivid in his memory even after nearly three thousand years.
[That laugh—I died.]
[But defeating Big Brother was enough—those words alone confirm they're true brothers.]
"After that, another two years passed. Monsters attacked Qingce Village again. This time, the three of us went to resist them."
"We successfully repelled the monsters. Big Brother even obtained a Vision in that battle. After the battle, the three of us decided to swear brotherhood."
"In the contest to decide who would be Big Brother, Second Brother lost to Big Brother—who had the Vision—so Big Brother was Big Brother, and Second Brother was Second Brother."
Hu Tao, Xingqiu, and Chongyun exchanged glances. They hadn't expected this outcome, but it also felt reasonable.
All three had Visions and naturally understood how greatly a Vision amplified an ordinary person.
They just hadn't expected the Qingce Sword Immortal to lose—and to lose to a Vision holder.
"After losing to Big Brother, Second Brother asked me to forge him a heavy sword and named it Mountain Severer, hoping that one day this sword could split mountains and sever peaks."
[Now I understand what was contained in Jun Bai's expression after hearing Iron Tongue Tian's storytelling.]
[So in Iron Tongue Tian's story, the only correct part was the title "Qingce Sword Immortal."]
"The three brothers grew up together, helping and supporting each other like real siblings. Before we realized it, the three of us had already journeyed far together."
"Until that day—the lingering will of the Dream God, the shadowy figure you defeated earlier, attacked."
"That shadowy figure's strength far surpassed the recreations from the Ley Lines. Only by joining forces could the three of us possibly defeat it."
"However, by then Big Brother and Second Brother had already guessed my identity and knew that shadowy will was coming for me. So they chose to cover my retreat."
"They were my Big Brother and Second Brother—they used their lives to cover my retreat. How could I abandon them?"
"I recalled my experiences from my first life, then turned back. At the cost of mutual heavy injury, I gravely wounded that lingering will. Then I carried the gravely wounded Big Brother and Second Brother back to Qingce Village."
"Before the wounds could heal, the enemy arrived—bringing massive numbers of monsters to launch an all-out assault on Qingce Village."
"I went alone to deal with the lingering will, only to fall into an ambush. There were two lingering wills of the Dream God. Fighting alone, I was no match."
"Big Brother was dealing with the monsters. At that moment, Second Brother arrived to share the pressure with me."
"At that time, he was holding this sword—covering for me against one of the Dream God's lingering wills." Jun Bai pointed to the rusted sword. "The greatest famous sword under heaven—Soaring Firmament Sword. Also the sword passed down through generations of the Jun family, drawable only by the greatest swordsman in the world."
"Two lingering wills of the Dream God—Second Brother and I each handled one." Jun Bai suddenly stopped.
[That's the whole story? Feels like… something's missing. Didn't it say the Sword Immortal gravely wounded a god?]
[If these lingering wills of the Dream God count as a god, then Second Brother directly slew a god—so… there's more to come?!]
[Coming from Silver Wolf's stream—run, there's a big knife ahead!]
"But after we dealt with the lingering wills of the Dream God, the true enemy finally revealed itself."
"The dragon god that had been defeated by the Geo Archon—after the Dream God's lingering will was defeated—recovered part of its power through the Dream God's remnants and broke free from its seal."
"And its next target was me." Jun Bai placed a hand over his heart. "The authority of this body holds extraordinary significance and possesses supreme potential. If it devoured me, it could recover its peak strength and advance even further."
"It hadn't recovered full power, but it still surpassed me."
"Big Brother fell in battle. I was stepped under its foot. Second Brother was also controlled by it. That was the moment I felt the most despair."
"Second Brother, under its control, held Soaring Firmament Sword and was about to finish me—becoming food for the dragon."
"But at that moment, Second Brother suddenly broke free of the dragon's control and unleashed the three most extreme swords I have ever seen in my life." Jun Bai's eyes faintly brightened, as if seeing again the scene of the dragon being gravely wounded by Jun Mo Li's three strikes.
But immediately after, his eyes dimmed: "Three swords—gravely wounding the god, carving out a sliver of hope in that desperate situation. Allowing me to counterattack from the brink of death."
"After using my authority to revive Big Brother, I went all out and joined Second Brother to confront the dragon."
"But even heavily wounded, the dragon could still wield god-level power. In the great battle, Second Brother was pierced through the heart by the dragon's attack—but at the same time created an opening for a killing blow."
"My power hadn't recovered—my authority could only save one person. I could only seize the opportunity Second Brother created with his life and launch my full-force strike at the dragon."
His fist gradually clenched: "But a centipede dies without stiffening—my full-force strike was still blocked by the dragon."
"But… it was still Second Brother."
Jun Bai reached out toward the decayed wood but didn't grasp it—ultimately lowering his hand: "Second Brother used this wooden sword—the very sword he used when he first began practicing swordsmanship."
"He pierced the dragon's heart, allowing me to break through that defense and completely slay the dragon."
"And Second Brother, after thrusting that sword, ultimately couldn't hold on. He collapsed to the ground—his heart gradually ceasing to beat."
A tear slid down Jun Bai's cheek.
"This is the story of the Qingce Sword Immortal. No talent, no halo, no great master, no satisfying revenge, no chivalrous justice. Nothing related to what a swordsman should have had anything to do with the true Qingce Sword Immortal."
"There was only a youth who didn't like swordsmanship but began learning it because of his father's wish."
"This story has no fortuitous encounters—just a youth relentlessly practicing swordsmanship."
"He was just an ordinary person, but… he was the Qingce Sword Immortal, my… Second Brother."