Sword Dynasty Episode 1 Recap
> Sword Dynasty Recap
In the autumn of the eleventh year of Yuanwu, as a fierce storm swept through Fengming City, Ding Ning, disguised as a boatman, confronted Song Shenshu. Ding Ning revealed he knew Song Shenshu had been present at the palace ten years prior and was there to collect a long-standing debt. Song Shenshu, boastfully mentioning his impending breakthrough to the fourth realm, attempted to intimidate Ding Ning. However, Ding Ning countered with the Nine-death Silkworm technique, terrifying Song Shenshu.
Fearing for his life, Song Shenshu offered crucial information: Lin Zhujiu of the Bashan Sword Field was still alive, secretly imprisoned in the deepest part of the Dafu Water Dungeon by the King of Heng, who sought to extract cultivation secrets from him. This secret was so well-kept that even Chancellor Li believed Lin Zhujiu to be dead.
Having obtained the information he sought, Ding Ning executed Song Shenshu, declaring that while he had settled his debt to "that person," he could never atone for the numerous lives owed to the Bashan Sword Field. After Song Shenshu's death, Ding Ning also unexpectedly acquired a Ning Shen Pearl. Ten years before, during a chaotic period of warring states, the ambitious King of Heng, Yuanwu, faced imminent defeat by the Lie army at the Yangming battlefield.
The chief of the Bashan Sword Field, Liang Jingmeng, intervened with his disciples, saving King Yuanwu and decisively turning the tide of the war, leading to the destruction of Lie and the defeat of the Hui and Qian states. At a celebratory palace banquet, Liang Jingmeng was lauded by many, who acknowledged his indispensable role in Heng's victory.
However, King Yuanwu, feeling threatened by Liang Jingmeng's immense prestige, provocatively suggested that without Liang Jingmeng, there would be no Kingdom of Heng, and by extension, no King of Heng, implying Liang and his disciples were solely responsible for the empire. Sensing the King's ill will, Liang Jingmeng sat down, declining the King's toast.
His fiancée, Ye Zhen, then rose, asserting that without King Yuanwu, the Kingdom of Heng could not have achieved its power, nor could a figure like Liang Jingmeng have risen to prominence. She then proposed a joint toast with Liang Jingmeng to the King. Ye Zhen, having secretly allied with King Yuanwu out of ambition for power and wealth, had already poisoned Liang Jingmeng's wine.
During the banquet, she chillingly informed Liang Jingmeng that only by his death could the Bashan disciples survive. As the confrontation escalated, Liang Jingmeng realized the wine was poisoned. A battle erupted, and though Liang Jingmeng unleashed his Nine-death Silkworm Art, he was ultimately struck down. Ye Zhen, shielding King Yuanwu, expressed her sorrow, lamenting that she had once vowed never to harm him. Liang Jingmeng tragically died.
His name lived on in the hearts of the people, though none dared to utter it, referring to him only as "That Man." King Yuanwu subsequently declared Liang Jingmeng a traitor who attempted regicide, announcing his execution and offering rewards to any Bashan disciples who pledged loyalty, while threatening death to those who resisted. In his final moments, Liang Jingmeng silently vowed vengeance against Yuanwu, Ye Zhen, and all who had betrayed Bashan.
Following Liang Jingmeng's death, the Gongsun family, due to their association with him, suffered complete annihilation, with only one daughter surviving. She adopted the name Zhangsun Qianxue and, posing as Ding Ning's aunt, settled in Fengming, operating the Wutong Tavern as a cover to gather information and cultivate her powers, driven by a vow to avenge Liang Jingmeng and her massacred family.
Meanwhile, for ten years, King Yuanwu had been in seclusion, striving to break through to the elusive eighth realm of cultivation, leaving Queen Ye Zhen to govern as regent, assisted by Chancellor Li and Chen Xuan, the Director of the Shendu Bureau. While many cultivators had reached the seventh realm, no one had yet breached the eighth, let alone the supreme ninth.
That day, Marquis Dugu, the eleventh-ranked among the Eleven Marquises and a key supporter of Liangcenglou, returned to Fengming. Ding Ning advised Zhangsun Qianxue that Marquis Dugu's death would destabilize both the imperial court and the martial arts world, creating an opportune moment to strike at the King. Acting on this, Zhangsun Qianxue intercepted Marquis Dugu on a rural road and, expending a significant portion of her cultivation, succeeded in killing him.
Simultaneously, an urgent royal summons brought Ye Celeng, a former Bashan disciple who now served as Director of the Jiantian Bureau, back to Fengming from her overseas training. She was tasked with apprehending Zhao Zhan, the seventh disciple of the defunct Lie Sword Forge, who had been discovered mourning his master at home. Ye Celeng, despite her prior acquaintance with Zhao Zhan, engaged him in combat and swiftly killed him with her Autumn Water Sword.
She then instructed her subordinates to give him a proper burial. Later, Chancellor Li expressed his bewilderment to Queen Ye Zhen, questioning why Ye Celeng, who had been cultivating abroad, was specifically summoned to eliminate Zhao Zhan, when other capable individuals in Fengming could have performed the task.
Queen Ye Zhen explained her two strategic reasons: firstly, Ye Celeng's decisive killing of Zhao Zhan, which she described as an "autumn thunderclap," served to reinforce Fengming's intangible "city walls" and solidify Heng's power. Secondly, many had speculated that Ye Celeng had been exiled; her return to eliminate a rebel would publicly affirm her continued close relationship with the King, thus dispelling such rumors.
She urged Chancellor Li and his colleagues to cooperate with Ye Celeng to remove all obstacles to Heng's prosperity. Back at the Wutong Tavern, Ding Ning returned, tracking mud into the establishment. Zhangsun Qianxue playfully scolded him for his untidiness and his casual approach to winemaking.
Ding Ning defended himself, remarking that the tavern's popularity was largely due to her beauty, and reiterated that his suggestion to open the wine shop was more practical than her initial risky plan of gathering intelligence in less respectable quarters, which would have made her an obvious target for the Jiantian and Shendu Bureaus. Ding Ning then informed Zhangsun Qianxue that Ye Celeng had killed Zhao Zhan alone, though she had sustained injuries in the process.
He elaborated that Ye Celeng, having originated from the Bashan Sword Field and specialized in the Water-departing Magic Art, would have been particularly formidable in the stormy weather. He speculated that her cultivation level, similar to Zhao Zhan's, was likely around the mid-seventh realm. Zhangsun Qianxue instructed Ding Ning to wash up and prepare for their joint cultivation upstairs, emphasizing the dwindling time they had. Later, during their evening cultivation, Ding Ning observed that Zhangsun Qianxue's True Vitality was unsteady.
He realized she must have recently engaged in combat, resulting in an influx of internal cold energy. To counter this, he embraced her, using his own Yang energy to warm her and expel the invading chill. Ding Ning also recalled Song Shenshu's earlier revelation about the existence of the legendary Gushan Sword Manual and that most of its clues were likely held by Bai Shanshui of the Yunshui Palace. He concluded that finding Bai Shanshui would be the key to acquiring the manual.
