Chapter 1: Young Yun Xi
Yun Xi had a dream.
In the dream, there was a young girl guarding the entrance between heaven and earth as she coldly looked ahead.
Three strands of icy blue hair stood upright on her forehead; her slender braided hair was hanging behind her. Her cuffs were inlaid with steel-blue gems while a double-edged sword sheath with a pendant on it was hanging on her waist; she gave off a very icy-cold and alienated aura.
While she was inserting her huge blue-slanted sword back into its sheath.
That sword made her slender body seem even more slender. Her blade also seemed to give off a cold silvery-white aura. Just the sword hilt alone was already over half a meter long.
The hilt of the sword and the edge of the blade seemed to share a single central connection point. The point seemed to be a circular compass, and in the middle of that compass was a huge keyhole. Apparently, something was sealed there.
Who are you?
For what reason do you always appear in my dream?
"..."
The young girl seemed to have opened her mouth to say something to Yun Xi.
A pity, Yun Xi was unable to understand what she was saying as it was not the language of the White Lotus Sword Domain.
Of course, the White Lotus Sword Domain's language was different from other languages. And although it was very strange, it was pleasant to hear.
Yun Xi stretched out his hands, apparently trying to touch the young girl who has been appearing in his dreams.
"Shuffle!" In a split second, Yun Xi's consciousness began to fade away, only leaving behind a piece of blue light from the double-edged sword.
"You... do not have the qualifications to open this gate..." She closed her eyes as she killed another unknown spirit.
****
"Oh, my god!" As Yun Xi rolled out of bed, he brutally hit his head against a dresser. A group of golden stars began to orbit around his head.
That dream again! As he began to knead his swollen temples, Yun Xi felt even more helpless.
As the saying goes "what you read is what you dream", but Yun Xi swore that he had never seen such a huge blue double-edged sword before, as well as the beautiful young lady.
Such a special young lady, even if he met her once, it would be impossible to forget.
Her face and her cold expression... even though it was just a dream, it left Yun Xi with an extremely deep impression.
Unfortunately, at the end of each dream, Yun Xi was hacked to death. Luckily, it was just a dream.
"Forget about it. That kind of girl... it would be impossible for me to come in contact with her." Yun Xi comfortably stretched out his arms and opened the window.
The window, being old, issued a creaking sound as it opened - the early spring sunshine fell into the narrow room, dispelling the humidity.
"Good morning, world!"
Yun Xi put his hands together as he looked out his window, only to see that the morning market was already bustling.
"Happy birthday, Yun Xi."
Today, Yun Xi turned 16. It was truly a day worth celebrating.
In the White Lotus Sword Domain, the age 16 represented the beginning of youthhood while age 18 represented adulthood.
Though he could not drink, he has already been accepted by the community and could work as an employee. He could also have an independent identification and choose his career.
Of course, those of the nobility had chosen the route for their future career ages ago. However, only at the age of 12 would they display their talent.
They received the best education and the best teachers. Starting from the basics, they would have surpassed others and this gap would only grow larger over time.
Ordinary children, unless they were a peerless talent, would not be able to compete against those of the nobility. This was the harsh truth of society.
The Sword Palace in the White Lotus Sword Domain was 90% composed of the nobility, while the ordinary children took up the remaining 10%.
One could not blame the sword palace's partiality, as the gap was just too big.
Although all the sword palaces began to recruit disciples at the age of 16, the exam was basically fair. Only the most outstanding from the many ordinary geniuses would have a chance to be chosen by a sword palace.
Of course, that sort of thing and Yun Xi didn't have any relationship.
Because he did not want to follow the way of the sword, it was highly unlikely for him to attend the sword palace exam. His career also had nothing to do with the sword.
"Well, let's prepare for today's practice."
He was not a swordsman, so there was no need to concern himself with the sword palace exams. Yun Xi's life was a simple and happy life, filled with common expectations.
His art was not that of fencing, but rather, the art of making bread.
Yes, he was just an ordinary young child of an ordinary couple. He wasn't going to become some talented hero.
He was born in an ordinary baker’s family, brought up with ordinary parenting. He inherited his family's bakery and was preparing to become his family store's next owner - this was Yun Xi's life goal.
His parents were in their fifties when they had him. Yun Xi grew up listening to his neighbors speak about how he was not born from his parents and that he was picked up from a garbage heap.
Of course, he had long known that this was an adult's way of joking; "A crane sent you to our home". When he heard those rumors for the first time though, his nose began to run.
As far as Yun Xi was concerned, they were the world's most adorable couple.
Now, the couple was traveling the world, relieved that the store would operate smoothly under his hands.
Making bread was a talent, and Yun Xi's handmade bread had quite the reputation. It had always been lacking in supply with such huge demands, as he had long surpassed his parents.
Looking at how amazing Yun Xi was, his parents passed down the family bread store to him and gave him full control over it, as they went off to enjoy a golden wedding honeymoon.
Today was when Yun Xi turned 16 and was the only one with a 3rd-ranked Bread Evaluation. People from major cities would also come to try to buy his family's bread store for 10 times the price.
Yun Xi refused because he was fond of this village along with its roads and stream, and of this ordinary bread store.
The world was huge; the god's domains in the universe numbered up to the tens of millions but this was the only home for him. He wanted to spend his life here.
Here was Yun Xi's family store, Yun Xi's most beloved home.
Unsurprisingly, he can spend his whole life here and perhaps, as a newlywed, he would travel over the star bridge to go to the other side of the Sword Domain. However, he would ultimately return with his other half and live off the rest of their days here.
This future wasn't far away and already Yun Xi wanted to spend his life with the girl of his dreams.
With the temperature of his hands, he began to knead the dough well. Calculating the correct ratio of flour and sugar, coupled with a good egg, he finally put it in the oven. The fresh bread that was taken out from the oven in the early morning was then arranged on top of Yun Xi's counter.
"3 Croissants coming up!"
"5 Pineapple Bread."
"10 Carrot Meals."
Yun Xi's bread shop had only been open for a quarter of an hour, but Yun Xi's handmade bread sold out nice and clean. The only thing remaining was the cheap white bread.
Sitting behind the nearly empty counter, Yun Xi had a smile on his face.
For a baker, there is nothing happier than having his customers love his bread.
As a 3rd-ranked Baker, although his position was not as great as the lowest sword palace's swordsman, in a small village like this, his talent could be said to have been the rarest talent of the century.
Many people believed that Yun Xi could truly make history by becoming the first person to obtain a 4th-ranked job.
"Little Xi, bread!" A crisp bell-sounding voice along with cheerful feet charged into the quiet bread shop.
Running in was someone close to Yun Xi's age. The beautiful young girl with the ponytail exuded an air of youthfulness.
She had a long ponytail while near her waist was a long and simple cyan sword. She had black moonlike eyelashes with a pair of warm black eyes.
Because of the strenuous exercises, her naturally small lips pursed up as she was endlessly gasping for air; the outline of her bent body was truly beautiful. When she laughed, her smile was like a sparkling crescent moon.
"Hua Huo, you want butter bread?"
Yun Xu skillfully took out the butter bread he made elaborately as it was always bought by others immediately once he presented them on the counter. Like feeding a puppy, he threw it to his childhood sweetheart.
Hua Huo tiptoed to bite at the bread Yun Xi threw; the two had over a decade of mutual understanding.
"I love you, Little Xi! Remember to increase the physical strength of the Rye Bread at noon for me!" Enjoying the tribute Yun Xi gave her, Hua Huo ran out of the small bread store like the wind.
To come and go in such a hurry is just like her general temper, always loud.
A summer storm would roughly describe this girl. Like Yun Xi, she was also a child genius that everyone was proud of.
Hua Huo moved to village ten years ago; it was said that she was born from a lineage of the Knight God's Domain. She was also the first genius to ever become a 3rd-ranked swordsman before the age of 16 since the beginning of history.
Being a swordsman of the 3rd rank was worlds away from Yun Xi's 3rd rank because this was the White Lotus Domain - a Sword Domain belonging to the countless god's domains.
It doesn't matter which sword domain of the countless god's domains you came from or the sword skill you practiced, only those who left behind a united sword path or formed their sword spirit, could receive utmost respect in a sword domain.
For a senior swordsman, becoming the Divine Sword God that transcended all under the heavens was everything. The godly swordsman was called a "Sky Sword" and they dominated in supremacy, being an unparalleled swordsman.
From trainees with no name, to becoming official soldiers of the 1st Rank, to elite soldiers, and even officers of the 2nd Rank. They represented the standards on the White Lotus Sword Domain.
The 3rd-ranked Hua Huo was already walking forward on an extraordinary road - truly worthy of being named the village's first expert.
At the same time, she was also Yun Xi's first love.
